IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


M^ 
^mP 


WJa 


1.0 


I.I 


■10 


12.8 


11-25  i  1.4 


IIIIIM 
M 

1.6 


6" 


% 


^t' 


7 


Photographic 

Sciences 
Coipcration 


2!3  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  )45S0 

(716)  S72-4503 


<^ 


W 


•1>^ 


:\ 


\ 


i\ 


CIHM/ICMH 

Microfiche 

Series. 


CIHM/ICMH 
Collection  de 
microfiches. 


Cair.adian  Institute  for  Historical  Microreproductions  /  Institut  Canadian  de  microreproductions  historiques 


Technical  and  Bibliographic  Notes/Notes  techniques  et  bibliographiques 


The  Institute  has  attempted  to  obtain  the  best 
original  copy  available  for  filming.  Features  of  this 
copy  which  may  be  bibliographically  unique, 
which  may  alter  any  of  the  images  in  the 
reproduction,  or  which  may  significantly  change 
the  usual  method  of  filming,  are  checked  below. 


L'Institut  a  microfilm^  ie  meilleur  exemplaire 
qu'il  lui  a  6ti  possible  de  se  procurer   Les  details 
de  cet  exemplaire  qui  sont  peut-dtre  uniques  du 
point  de  vue  bibliographique,  qui  peuvent  modifier 
une  image  reproduite,  ou  qui  peuvent  exiger  una 
modification  dans  la  m6thode  normale  de  filmage 
sont  indiqu^s  ci-dessous. 


j    1/  Coloured  covers/ 

I  ^    Couverture  de  couleur 


I     ]    Covers  damaged/ 


□ 


Couverture  endommag^e 


Covers  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Couverture  restaurde  et/ou  pelliculde 


I      I    Cover  title  missing/ 


Le  titre  de  couverture  manque 


□    Coloured  maps/ 
Carres  gdographiqqes  en  couleur 


□    Coloured  pages/ 
Pages  de  couleur 

□    Pages  damaged/ 
Pages  endommag6es 

□    Pages  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Pages  restaurdes  et/ou  pellicul6es 


[^ 


Pages  discoloured,  stained  or  foxed/ 
Pages  d6co!or6es,  tachetdes  ou  piqu^es 


□Pages  detached/ 
Pages  ddtach^es 


nf„° 


Coloured  ink  (i.e.  other  than  blue  or  black)/ 
ere  de  couleur  (i.e.  autre  que  bleue  ou  noire) 


I     T/Showthrough/ 
I  W   Transparence 


I      I    Coloured  plates  and/or  illustrations/ 


D 


Planches  et/ou  illustrations  en  coi'leur 

Bound  with  other  material/ 
Relii^  avec  d'autres  documents 


I      I    Quality  of  print  varies/ 


Quality  in^gale  de  I'impression 

Includes  supplemei':tary  material/ 
Comprend  du  materiel  supplementaire 


n 


□ 


Tight  binding  may  cause  shadows  or  distortion 
along  interior  margin/ 

La  reliure  serree  peut  causer  de  I'ombre  ou  de  la 
distortion  le  long  de  la  marge  intdrieure 

Blank  leaves  added  during  restoration  may 
appear  within  the  text.  Whenever  possible,  these 
have  been  omitted  from  filming/ 
II  se  peut  que  certaines  pages  blanches  ajoutdes 
lors  d'une  restauration  apparaissent  dans  le  texte, 
mais,  lorsque  cela  6tait  possible,  ces  pages  n'ont 
pas  6t6  filmdes. 


D 
D 


Only  edition  available/ 
Seule  Edition  disponible 

Pages  wholly  or  partially  obscured  by  errata 
slips,  tissues,  etc.,  have  been  refilmed  to 
ensure  the  best  possible  image/ 
Les  pages  totalement  ou  partiellement 
obscurcies  par  un  feuillet  d'errata,  une  pelure, 
etc.,  ont  6x6  filmdes  6  nouveau  de  fagon  d 
obtenir  la  meilleure  image  possible. 


D 


Additional  comments:/ 
Commentaires  suppl6mentaires: 


This  item  is  filmed  at  the  reduction  ratio  checked  below/ 

Ce  document  est  filmi  au  taux  de  reduction  indiqui  ci-dessous. 


10X 

14X 

18X 

22X 

28X 

30X 

y 

12X 


16X 


20X 


24X 


28X 


a2X 


The  copy  filmed  here  has  been  reproduced  thanks 
to  the  generosity  of: 

Library  of  the  Public 
Archives  of  Canada 


L'exemplaire  filmi  f ut  reproduit  grAce  d  la 
gAnirositA  de: 

La  bibliothdque  des  Archives 
publiques  du  Canada 


The  images  appearing  here  are  the  best  quality 
possible  considering  the  condition  and  legibility 
of  the  original  copy  and  in  keeping  with  the 
filming  contract  specifications. 


Original  copies  in  printed  paper  covers  are  filmed 
beginning  with  the  front  cover  and  ending  on 
the  last  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, or  the  back  cover  when  appropriate.  All 
other  original!  copies  are  filmed  beginning  on  the 
first  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, and  ending  on  the  last  page  v.'ith  a  printed 
or  illustrated  impression. 


Les  images  suivantes  ont  6t6  reproduites  avec  le 
plus  grand  soin,  compte  tenu  de  la  condition  at 
de  la  nettet6  de  l'exemplaire  film6,  et  en 
conformity  avec  les  conditions  du  contrat  de 
filmage. 

Les  exemplairfrs  originaux  dont  la  couverture  en 
papier  est  imprimde  sont  film6s  en  commenpant 
par  le  premier  plat  et  en  terminant  soit  par  la 
dernlAre  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration.  soit  par  le  scrcond 
plat,  salon  le  cas.  Tous  les  autres  exemplaires 
originaux  sont  fiimds  en  commengant  par  la 
premidre  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration  et  en  terminant  par 
la  derniire  page  qui  comporte  une  telle 
empreinte. 


The  last  recorded  frame  on  each  microfiche 
shall  contain  tho  symbol  —»>(  meaning  "CON- 
TINUED"), or  the  symbol  V  (meaning  "END"), 
whichever  applies. 


Un  des  symboles  suivants  apparaftra  sur  la 
derniire  image  de  cheque  microfiche,  selon  le 
cas:  le  symbols  — ►  signifie  "A  SUIVRE  ",  le 
symbols  V  signifie  "FIN". 


Maps,  plates,  charts,  etc.,  may  be  filmed  at 
different  reduction  ratios.  Those  too  large  to  be 
entirely  included  in  one  exposure  are  filmed 
beginning  in  the  upper  left  hand  corner,  left  to 
right  and  top  to  bottom,  as  many  frames  as 
required.  The  following  diagrams  illustrate  the 
method: 


Les  cartes,  planches,  tableaux,  etc.,  peuvent  dtre 
filmte  d  des  taux  de  reduction  diff6rents. 
Lorsque  le  document  est  trop  grand  pour  dtre 
reproduit  en  un  seul  clich6,  il  est  film6  A  partir 
de  Tangle  supArieur  gauche,  de  gauche  d  <iroite, 
et  de  haut  en  bas,  en  prenant  le  nombre 
d'images  n6cessaire.  Les  diagrammes  suivants 
illustrent  la  mithode. 


1 

2 

3 

1 

2 

3 

i 

4 

5 

6 

I 

i 


i 


'7 


V77 


THE 


CANADIAN    FEENCH 


IN 


NEW   ENGLAND, 


[FROM  THE  THIRTEENTH  ANNUAL  REPORT  OF  THE  MASSACHUSETTS 
BUREAU  OP  STATISTICS  OF  LABOR.] 


BY 


OAREOLL  D.  WRIGHT, 


CHIEF. 


BOSTON: 

EaiU,  aiberp,  *  Co.,  Printew  to  t!)e  Commontocattj), 

117  Franklin  Stbeet. 

1882. 


.'>'  r 


:  Y' 


J 


THE 


CANADIAN    FEENCH 


I 


Of 


NEW    ENGLAND. 


[FROM  THE  THIRTEENTH  ANNUAL  RErOUT  OF  THE  MASSACHUSETTS 
BUREAU  OF  STATISTICS  OF  LABOR.] 


BY 


OAREOLL   D.  WRIGHT, 


CHIEF. 


BOSTON: 
EanB,  aiiJerp,  $(  Co.,  Printcra;  to  tl)e  Cominontoealtb, 

117  Franklin  Stbeet. 
1882. 


THE  CANADIAN  FRENCH  IN  NEW  ENGLAND. 


The  legislature  of  1880  passed  the  following 

Resolve  relative  to   a  Uniform   System  of  Laws  in  Certain 
States,  regulating  the  Hours  of  Labor. 

Resolved,  That  the  Bureau  of  Statistics  of  Labor  is  hereby  directed  to 
collect  data  and  ootain  testimony  from  employers  and  employes  in  the 
States  of  Maine,  New  Hampshire,  Massachusetts,  Rhode  Island,  Connect- 
icut, and  New  York,  relative  to  a  uniform  system  of  laws  to  regulate  the 
hours  of  labor  in  the  States  mentioned,  and  to  present  the  results  of  its 
investigations  to  the  legislature  in  its  next  annual  report. 

Approved  March  17,  1880. 

The  results  of  the  investigation  conducted  under  this  re- 
solve were  fully  reported  in  the  Twelfth  Annual  Report  of 
this  Bureau.  In  discussing  the  reasons  urged  by  parties  why 
the  Massachusetts  system  should  not  be  adopted  in  neighbor- 
ing States,  we  said,  — 

"  In  all  our  investigations  we  have  found  but  three  serious  objections 
urged  against  the  adoption  of  ten  hours,  and  these  we  will  now  state." 

After  stating  the  first  and  second  objections  urged  against 
the  adoption  of  the  ten-hour  system,  we  gave  a  rSsumS  of  the 
third  in  the  following  language  (see  pp.  469-470)  :  — 

«*  The  third  objection  to  ten  hours  is  the  presence  of  the  Canadian 
French.  Wherever  they  appear,  there  their  presence  is  urged  as  a  reason 
why  the  hours  of  labor  should  not  be  reduced  to  ten.  The  reasons  for 
this  urgency  are  not  far  to  find. 

♦•With  some  exceptions  the  Canadian  French  are  the  Chinese  of  the 
Eastern  States.  They  care  nothing  for  rur  institutions,  civil,  political, 
or  educational.  They  do  not  come  to  make  a  home  among  us,  to  dwell 
with  us  as  citizens,  and  so  become  a  paij  of  us;  but  their  purpose  is 
merely  to  sojourn  a  few  years  as  aliens,  touching  us  only  at  a  single  point, 
that  of  work,  and,  when  they  have  gathered  out  of  us  what  will  satisfy 


4  STATISTICS   OP  LABOR. 

their  ends,  to  get  them  away  to  whence  they  came,  and  bestow  it  there. 
They  are  a  horde  of  industrial  invaders,  not  a  stream  of  stable  settlers. 
Voting,  with  all  that  it  implies,  they  care  nothing  about.  Rarely  does 
one  of  them  become  naturalized.  They  will  not  send  their  children  to 
school  if  they  can  Iielp  it,  but  endeavor  to  crowd  them  into  the  mills  at 
the  earliest  possible  age.  To  do  thft  they  deceive  about  the  age  of  their 
children  with  brazen  effrontery.  They  deceive  also  about  their  schooling, 
declaring  that  they  have  been  to  school  the  legal  time,  when  they  know 
they  have  not,  and  do  not  intend  that  they  shall.  And  when  at  length 
they  are  cornered  by  the  school  officers,  and  there  is  no  other  escape, 
often  they  scrabble  together  what  few  things  they  have,  and  move  away 
to  some  other  place  where  they  are  unknown,  and  where  they  hope  by  a 
repetition  of  the  same  deceits  to  escape  the  schools  entirely,  and  keep  the 
children  at  work  right  on  in  the  mills.  And  when,  as  is  indeed  some- 
times the  case,  any  of  them  are  so  situated  that  they  cannot  escape  at  all, 
then  the  stolid  indifference  of  the  children  wears  out  the  teacher  with 
what  seems  to  be  an  idle  task. 

"  These  people  have  one  good  trait.  They  are  indefatigable  workers, 
and  docile.  All  they  ask  is  to  be  set  to  work,  and  they  care  little  who 
rules  them  or  how  they  are  ruled.  To  earn  all  they  can  by  no  matter  how 
many  hours  of  toil,  to  live  in  the  most  beggarly  way  so  that  out  of  their 
earnings  they  may  spend  as  little  for  living  as  possible,  and  to  carry  out 
of  the  country  what  tiiey  can  thus  save:  this  is  the  aim  of  the  Canadian 
French  in  our  factory  districts.  Incidentally  they  must  have  some 
amusements',  and,  so  far  as  the  males  are  concerned,  drinking  and  smok- 
ing and  lounging  constitute  the  sum  of  these." 

These  statements  met  the  earnest  and  patriotic  condemna- 
tion of  the  Canadian  French  of  New  England ;  and  the  French 
residents  of  Lowell  and  Hudson  in  Massachusetts  passed  series 
of  resolutions  on  the  subject,  and  sent  them  to  the  legisla- 
ture during  its  session  of  1881.  These  resolutions,  by  con- 
current vote,  were  referred  without  other  action  to  this  Bu- 
reau.    The  resolutions  are  as  follows :  — 


Lowell,  Mass.,  May,  1881. 
Hon.  Charles  J.  Notes, 

Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives:  — 

Sir,  —  The  "  Socidtd  St.  Jean  Baptiste  de  Lowell,  Mass.,"  a  national 
and  benevolent  society  of  the  Canadian  French  of  Lowell,  organized  in 
1869  and  incorporated  in  1870,  according  to  the  laws  of  the  Common- 
wealth, at  a  regular  meeting  held  May  4, 1881,  unanimously  adopted  the 
following  resolutions :  — 

BESOLUTIONS. 

Whereas,  The  Chief  of  the  Bureau  of  Statistics  of  Labor,  in  his 
Twelfth  Annual  Report  to  the  Hon.  Charles  J.  Noyes,  Speaker  of  the 


THE  CANADIAN   FRENCH.  6 

House  of  Representatives  of  the  Common wenlth,  denounced  the  presence 
of  the  Canadian  French  as  an  objection  to  the  system  of  ten  hours'  hibor, 
onliing  them  the  "  Chiuesu  of  llie  East;  a  horde  of  industrial  invaders;  a 
deceitful  people  who  seelc  their  amusements  iu  drinliing,  smoking,  ar-* 
lounging,"  etc.,  etc.,  —  it  is 

liesoU-edy  Tliat  we  deny  each  and  every  accusation  contained  in  said 
report,  and  that  we  protest  most  energetically  against  these  insinuations 
made  against  the  French  Canadians  of  the  Eastern  States. 

llesolvetl,  That  it  is  the  duty  of  all  and  every  French  Canadian  in 
New  England  to  strongly  protest  against  this  report  so  far  as  it  concerns 
them. 

Resolved,  That  a  copy  of  these  presents  be  submitted  to  the  legisla- 
ture of  this  Commonwealth,  with  our  prayers  to  consider. 

J.  W.  PARADIS,  President. 
J.  H.  GuiLLBT,  Secretary. 


A  true  copy  of  the  record  — 
Attest : 


J.  H.  GuiLLET,  Secretary. 


Lowell,  May,  1881. 
Hou.  Charles  J.  Notes, 

Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives :  — 

Sir,  —  The  Fi'ench  Canadians  of  Lowell,  feeling  aggrieved  at  the 
report  of  Col.  Carroll  D.  "Wright,  Chief  of  the  Bureau  of  Statistics  of 
Labor,  assembled  at  a  mass-meeting.  May  5,  1881,  and  passed  the 
following  resolutions,  which  they  humbly  present  for  yom-  considera- 
tion:— 


RESOLUTIONS. 

Whereas,  The  Chief  of  the  Bureau  of  Statistics  of  Labor,  in  his  report 
to  the  Hon.  Charles  J.  Noyes,  Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives 
of  Massachusetts,  declares  that  the  presence  of  the  French  Canadians  in 
the  Eastern  States  is  an  objection  to  the  system  of  ten  hours  of  labor  in 
manufacturing  establishments;  and 

Whereas,  Lowell  is  the  greatest  manufacturing  district  of  the  Eastern 
States,  and  the  number  of  Fiench  Canadians  is  much  greater  than  in  any 
other  centre  in  New  England;  and 

Whereas,  We  recognize  unanimously  the  wisdom  of  the  ten-hour 
system,  — 

Resolved,  That  we  protest  energetically  against  this  portion  of  the 
report  of  the  Bureau  of  Statistics,  as  being  entirely  groundless;  and 

Whereas,  For  the  past  fifteen  years,  agents  of  the  manufacturers  have 
been  seat  to  Canada  to  solicit  its  inhabitants  to  come  to  the  States,  prom- 
ising them  good  places  and  good  wages ;  and 

Whereas,  By  repeated  invitations  this  class  of  population  has  come  to 
this  section  to  live  in  this  land  of  liberty ;  and 

Whereas,  The  Chief  of  the  Bureau  of  Statistics  in  his  report  called 
them  *'  the  Chinese  of  the  East: "  it  is 


6 


STATISTICS  OF  LABOR. 


Resolved,  That  we  deny  with  indignation  the  epithet,  and  protest 
strongly  aguiii.st  this  portion  of  the  report  as  being  injurious  to  our 

race. 

Whereas,  We  Canadian  French  of  New  England  are  yet,  for  the  most 
part,  i|i;nonint  of  the  English  hipguago,  but  as  soon  as  we  become  ac- 
quainted with  the  language  and  the  habits  and  cuslomii  of  this  country 
we  recognize  the  high  wisdom  of  the  institutions, — 

Resolved,  That  we  protest  against  the  part  of  the  report  which  says 
that  ''we  do  not  care  for  the  institutions  —  civil,  political,  or  educational 
—  in  this  country." 

Whereas,  Since  the  French  Canadians  have  come  to  this  section  they 
have  reached  a  population  of  four  hundred  thousand  in  New  England: 
and  whereas  a  large  number  have  become  proprietors,  paying  large  taxes: 
and  whereas  for  the  most  jjart  the  young  men  propose  to  make  their  home 
here,  — 

Resolved,  That  we  protest  against  the  portion  of  the  report  which  says 
that  we  "  are  a  horde  of  industrial  invaders." 

Whereas,  We  have  to  live  five  years  in  this  country  before  we  can 
become  citizens  of  this  glorious  Republic,  and  the  French  Canadians  have 
been  here  in  large  numbers  but  five  or  six  years,  there  are  over  two  hun- 
dred voters  of  this  class  in  Lowell  alone,  — 

Resolved,  That  we  protest  with  energy  against  the  portion  of  the 
report  which  says,  that  "  voting,  with  all  that  it  implies,  they  care  noth- 
ing about,  nor  rarely  does  one  of  them  become  naturalized." 

Whereas,  We  recognize  the  necessity  of  sending  our  children  to 
school,  and  having  done  so  continually,  petitioning  the  city  of  Lowell  to 
find  schoolrooms  for  our  children,  — 

Resolved,  That  we  protest  strongly  against  the  portion  of  the  report 
which  says  "that  they  will  not  send  their  children  to  school  if  they  can 
help  it,  and  that  they  deceive  also  about  their  schooling  with  brazen 
effrontery." 

Resolved,  That  whereas  the  French  Canadians  of  Lowell  have  estab- 
lished two  national  benevolent  societies,  two  literary  societies  which  give 
literary  and  dramatic  representations  twice  a  month,  a  band  that  give 
occasional  public  concerts,  and  three  societies  for  children,  furnishing 
them  with  proper  amusements ;  and 

Whereas,  In  our  population,  which  is  above  ten  thousand  in  Lowell, 
the  average  found  guilty  of  intoxication  before  the  police  court  of  Lowell 
is  not  over  twelve  per  annum:  it  is 

Resolved,  That  we  protest  strongly  against  the  portion  of  the  report 
which  says  that  "drinking  and  smoking  and  lounging  are  the  sum  of 
their  amusements." 

J.   H.   GUILLET,  President. 
E.  H.  Kino,  Secretary. 

A  true  copy  — 

Attest:  E.  H.  King,  Secretary. 


THE  CANADIAN  FRENCH.  7 

jMVfKU.,  May,  1881. 
Hon.  Ghaulrh  J.  Novicn, 

Speaker  of  the  House  of  Itgprescntaliven :  — 

Sir,  — "  L'A.s80ciation  ile.s  Jeuiies  (Jens  Catlioliques,"  a  lit(M'ary  so- 
ciety of  Lowell,  Mass.,  organized  in  1878,  at  a  meeting  held  May  4,  1881, 
adopted  unanimously  the  following 

liKSOLtrrioN. 

Whereas,  Col.  Carroll  I).  Wright,  Chief  of  the  Bureau  of  Statistics 
of  Labor,  in  his  report  to  Hon.  Charles  J.  Noyea,  Speaker  of  the  House  of 
Representatives,  has  most  unjustly  and  injuriounly  treated  the  French 
Canadian  population  of  the  Eastern  States:  it  is 

Resolved,  That  we  protest  most  energetically  against  each  and  every 
allegation,  contained  in  the  said  report,  having  u  tendency  to  injure  in 
any  way  the  good  standing  of  the  French  Canadian  nationality. 

JEAN  G.   COTfi, 

President. 

H.    CONSTANTINEAU,   JuN., 

Secretary. 

A  true  copy  — 

Attest:  H.  Constantinkau,  Jun., 

Secretary, 

We  earnestly  request  that  the  above  resolution  be  transmitted  to  the 
legislature  for  their  early  consideration. 

A.   J.   G.   C. 

H.    CONSTANTINEAU,   J  UN., 

Secretary. 


Resolutions   pkotesting  against  Cektain  Poktions  of  Carroll 
D.  Wright's  Annual  Report  op  the  Bureau  of  Statistics. 

W!>'ereas,  The  Chief  of  the  Bureau  of  Statistics  of  Labor,  Hou.  Car- 
roll D.  Wright,  in  his  report  to  the  Hou.  Charles  J.  Noyes,  Speaker  of  the 
Generil  Court  of  Massachusetts,  declares  that  the  presence  of  the  French 
Canp^diana  in  the  Eastern  States  is  an  objection  and  an  obstacle  to  the 
syptem  of  ten  hours  of  labor  in  manufacturing  establishments ;  and 

Whereas,  Such  an  accusation  should  not  be  allowed  to  pass  unrebuked 
as  the  calumny  of  a  prejudiced  and  uninformed  mind  against  so  respect- 
able a  portion  of  population  as  the  four  hundred  thousand  Canadians  in 
the  Eastern  States  represent;  and 

Whereas,  We  recognize  unanimously  the  wisdom  of  the  ten-hour 
system, — be  it 

Resolved,  That  we,  the  French  Canadians  of  Hudson,  in  public  meeting 
assembled,  protest  earnestly  against  that  portion  of  Carroll  D.  Wright's 
report  which  declares  our  presence,  there  or  elsewhere  in  the  State,  to 
be  an  objection  or  obstacle  to  the  introduction  of  that  system;  and 


8 


STATISTICS   OF  LABOR. 


ll 


Whereas,  For  the  past  fifteen  years,  agents  of  the  manufacturers  of 
New  England  have  been  sent  to  Canada  to  solicit  its  inhabitants  to  come 
to  the  States,  promising  them  good  places  and  good  wages;  and 

Whereas,  It  is  by  repeated  invitations  that  tiiis  class  of  population  has 
come  to  this  section  to  live  in  this  land  of  liberty;  and 

Whereas,  They  have  been  called  by  the  Chief  of  the  Bureau  of  Statis- 
tics "the  Chinese  of  the  East,"  —  be  it 

Resolccd,  That  we  protest  indignantly  against  the  injustice  of  the  com- 
parison, and  qualify  it  as  injurious  to  our  industrious,  indefatigable, 
dociU,  moral,  and  religious  race;  uad 

Whereas,  Though  many  of  us  are  not  fully  versed  in  the  English  lan- 
guage, or  acquainted  with  the  habits  and  customs  of  the  country,  still  we 
recognize  the  high  wisdom  of  its  institutions,  — be  it 

Resolved,  That  we  protest  against  that  part  of  the  report  which  says 
that  we  do  not  care  for  the  institutions  —  civil,  political  or  educational — 
of  the  country ;  and 

Whereas,  Since  the  French  Canadians  have  come  to  this  section,  they 
have  reached  a  population  of  four  hundred  thousand  in  New  England; 
and 

Whereas,  A  large  number  have  become  land  and  property  holders,  pay- 
ing their  share  of  the  taxes;  and 

Whereas,  For  the  most  part,  the  young  men  propose  to  here  make 
their  homes,  —  be  it 

Resolccd,  That  we  protest  against  that  portion  of  the  report  which 
says  *;hat  *'  we  are  a  horde  of  industrial  invaders;  "  and 

Whereas,  Although  a  large  number  of  French  Canadians  have  been 
here  but  five  or  six  years,  yet  tliey  still  seek  to  maintain  their  proportion 
of  naturalized  citizens  of  the  United  States,  — be  it 

Resolved,  That  ne  protest  with  energy  against  the  statement  of  the 
report  which  says,  "  they  caiu  little  for  voting,  with  all  that  it  implies, 
nor  rarely  does  one  of  them  become  natur-xlized;  "  and 

Whereas,  We  recognize  the  necessity  of  sending  cur  children  to 
school,  and  have  done  so  continually,  — be  it 

Resolved,  That  we  protest  against  that  portion  of  the  report  which 
declares  that  "  they  will  not  serd  their  children  to  school  if  they  can  help 
it,  and  that  they  deceive  also  about  their  schooling  with  brazen  effront- 
ery; "  and 

Whereas,  The  French  Canadians  of  Hudson  have  established  a  na- 
tional benevolent  and  literary  society,  which  gives  literary  and  dramatic 
representations,  furnishing  proper  amusements;  and 

Whereas,  In  our  popidation,  the  average  found  guilty  of  intoxication, 
or  graver  crimes,  is  quite  small,  —  be  it 

Resolved,  That  W3  protest  against  that  portion  of  the  report  which 
asserts  that  "drinking  and  smoking  and  lounging  are  the  sum  of  their 
amusements." 

Resolved,  That,  in  drawing  his  conclusions  henceforth,  the  honorable 
Chief  of  the  Bureau  pays  more  attention  to  that  rule  of  logic  which 
forbids  drawing  universal  principles  from  particular  cases,  thus  condemn- 
ing the  mass  for  the  faults  of  some. 


THE  CANAIiIAN^  FRENCH. 


9 


Resolvedy  That  these  resolutions,  signed  by  a  committee  of  five  citi- 
zens, including  our  pastor,  be  transmitted  to  our  lionorable  Representa- 
tive to  the  General  Assembly,  E.  M.  Stowe,  with  the  request  that  he 
publicly  present  them  to  the  honorable  Speaker,  Charles  J.  Noyes. 

P.   A.   McKENNA,  Pastor, 
J.  J.  DeNOYER,  M.D., 
P.  0.  DUPONT, 
PETER  SHARON, 
J.  A.  COURTEMANCHE, 
FRANK  L.   FRANCIS, 

Committee  on  Resolutions. 

The  legislature,  in  referring  these  vigorous  resolutions  to 
this  office,  did  not  indicate  any  action  regarding  them ;  and 
if  the  statements  which  were  so  strongly  condemned  had 
been  made  in  any  spirit  of  captiousness,  or  in  malice,  or 
through  any  prejudice  against  the  French  Canadians,  we 
should  have  contented  ourselves  by  simply  printing  the  pro- 
tests. The  statements  in  the  last  report  having  been  made 
in  good  faith,  and  as  the  results  of  the  observations  of,  and 
statements  made  to,  our  agents,  we  thought  it  but  fair  to  all 
parties  that  the  French  should  have  a  full  and  free  opportu- 
nity to  present  such  testimony  as  they  might  have  showing 
their  progress  in  the  United  States ;  and  consequently  a  hear- 
ing was  announced  for  Oct.  25,  1881,  to  which  all  persons 
interested  were  invited.  The  circular  of  invitation,  which 
was  given  the  widest  circulation,  contained  in  brief  the  rea- 
sons for  the  hearing,  and  the  following  statement :  — 


♦'  I  am  not  aware  that  any  other  desire  exists  on  the  part  of  the  officers 
.  of  this  Bureau  than  that  to  obtain  the  exact  truth.  Certainly  no  pre- 
judice exists  against  the  French,  and  in  order  that  the  statements  of 
French  Canadians  residing  in  this  State  or  in  the  States  covered  by  the 
invesiigation  may  have  the  benefit  of  the  same  prominence  as  that  given 
to  the  statements  to  which  they  object,  they  are  invited  to  attend  a  hear- 
ing in  the  Green  Room  at  the  State  House,  Boston,  on  Tuesday,  Oct.  25, 
1881,  at  ten  o'clock  a.m. 

'«  This  hearing  shall  be  conducted  in  a  thoroughly  impartial  manner  by 
the  officers  of  this  Bureau,  and  all  parties  desiring  to  be  heard  upon  the 
matters  in  question  shall  have  an  opportunity.  The  results  of  the  hear- 
ing will  be  printed  in  the  Thirteenth  Annual  Report  of  the  Bureau  to  be 
laid  before  the  next  legislature.  It  sliould  be  understood  that  facts  only 
should  be  given  at  the  hearing;  that  is,  facts  relating  to  the  education, 
habits,  etc.,  of  the  French  Canadian  residents  in  the  States  named." 


10 


STATISTICS   OF  LABOR. 


In  accordance  with  this  invitation,  some  sixty  representa- 
tive French  Canadian  gentlemen  attended,  and  offered  their 
protests  and  their  evidence  which  appear  in  the  following 
full  stenographic 

Report  of  the  Hearing. 

Mr.  Wright,  Chief  of  the  Bureau,  presiding,  opened  the 
hearing  as  follows :  — 

Gentlemen,  —  The  legislature  of  Massachusetts,  by  chap. 
29,  Resolves  of  1880,  directed  this  Bureau  to  make  an  in- 
vestigation in  the  States  of  Maine,  New  Hampshire,  Massa- 
chusetts, Rhode  Island,  and  Connecticut,  relative  to  "  a 
uniform  system  of  laws  to  regulate  the  hours  of  labor  in  the 
States  mentioned,  and  to  present  the  results  of  its  investiga- 
tions to  the  legislature  in  its  next  annual  report." 

The  investigation  was  made,  and  the  results  reported  in 
the  Twelfth  Annual  Report  of  this  Bureau. 

Among  the  objections  given  by  many  manufacturers  and 
operatives,  in  the  States  where  no  ten-hour  system  existed, 
was  the  presence  of  the  French  Canadians ;  and  the  reasons 
given  by  parties  why  the  French  were  an  obstacle  to  the 
extension  of  the  system  were  presented  in  said  report. 

These  reasons,  as  well  as  all  other  results  of  the  investiga- 
tion, were  reported ;  and  the  officers  of  the  Bureau  would  have 
been  derelict  in  their  duties,  and  would  have  disobeyed  the 
positive  commands  of  the  legislature,  had  these  reasons  not 
been  reported. 

The  moment  the  Bureau,  either  through  fear  of  offending 
any  party  or  race,  or  through  desire  to  favor  any  party  or 
rn.ce,  suppresses  facts  or  evidence  given  it  in  the  legitimate 
course  of  an  investigation,  or  introduces  statements  of  its  own 
invention,  and  reports  such  for  facts,  whatever  usefulness  it 
may  have  will  be  gone,  and  the  officers  so  prostituting  the 
privileges  of  the  Bureau  should  meet  the  very  severest  con- 
demnation the  public  can  bestow. 

The  reasons  given  by  parties  why  the  presence  of  the 
French  Canat^  ans  in  factory  towns  is  an  obstacle  to  the  ex- 
tension of  the  ten-hour  system  have  offended  the  French ;  and 
they  have  expressed  their  disapprobation  of  such  reasons  by 
resolutions,  which  have  been  presented  to  the  legislature, 
and  by  the  legislature  referred  to  the  Bureau  of  Statistics. 


THE  CANADIAN  FRENCH. 


11 


Many  bodies  of  the  French,  in  convention,  have  passed 
very  severe  strictures  upon  the  statements  of  the  report ;  and, 
what  is  to  be  regretted,  have  not  confined  themselves  to 
denying  the  truth  of  the  reasons  reportecl,  but  have  seen  fit 
to  accuse  the  officers  of  the  Bureau,  personally,  of  issuing 
calumnious  itatements.  I  do  not  know  as  I  can  blame  the 
French  for  being  exasperated;  the  only  fault,  however,  I 
can  plead  guilty  to  in  regard  to  the  report  in  question,  as  it 
relates  to  the  French,  is  that  it  was  not  stated  fully  enough, 
perhaps,  that  the  evidence  whijh  offends  did  not  relate  to 
Massachusetts  at  all,  and  that  it  was  not  explicit  enough  in 
stating  the  localities  to  which  thr-  evidence  applied.  We  were 
discussing  the  reasons  against  the  extension  of  the  ten-hour 
system ;  and  such  reasons  could  not  apply  to  Massachusetts, 
because  the  ten-hour  system  existed  here  already. 

The  legislature  has  not  indicated  any  way  in  which  the 
resolutions  referred  to  the  Bureau  should  be  treated ;  but  I 
have  thought  it  only  fair  and  honorable  to  invite  you  to  this 
hearing,  that  you  may  not  only  protest  against  the  statements 
cf  the  report,  but  that  you  may  introduce  such  evidence  as 
you  may  have  relative  to  the  progress  of  your  race. 

Please  bear  in  mind  that  personally  I  have  no  pride  of 
opinion  in  this  matter,  and  shall  not  feel  hurt  if  you  succeed 
in  proving  every  statement  made  to  the  Bureau  relative  to  the 
French  to  be  absolutely  false.  I  hope  you  will  confine  your 
statements  to  facts,  and  be  as  brief  as  possible  in  your  testi- 
mony, all  material  parts  of  which  will  be  printed  in  the  next 
annual  report  of  the  Bureau. 

After  the  French  present  have  been  heard,  or  rather  those 
who  have  come  delegated  to  speak,  an  opportunity  will  be 
given  to  any  who  may  wish  to  be  heard  in  the  matter  before 
us.  ' 

I  hope  we  now  understand  each  other,  and  that  you  have 
come  here  in  the  same  spirit  in  which  you  have  been  invited 
—  that  of  truth  and  fairness.  I  wish  you  to  remember  one 
thing,  however,  and  that  is  that  while  this  land  is  open  to  all, 
and  a  welcoming  hand  is  extended  to  all  without  regard  to 
nationality,  the  people  of  the  United  States  will  always  look 
with  disapprobation  upon  any  attempt  upon  the  part  of 
settlers  to  be  other  than  American  citizens.  Our  laws  protect 
the  alien  as  well  as  the  citizen,  and  all  the  benefits  of  our 


12 


STATISTICS  OF  LABOR. 


institutions  are  as  free  to  you  as  to  the  native  born ;  but  you 
cannot  be  loyal  Americans  and  loyal  French  Canadians  at 
the  same  time. 

I  am  inclined  to  think  that  whatever  prejudice  there  has 
has  been  in  the  public  mind  against  the  French  Canadians, 
and  I  am  aware  there  has  been  such,  has  arisen  from  the 
seeming  disposition  of  the  French  to  insist  upon  preserving  a 
distinct  national  existence  within  the  Republic.  If  the 
French  can  learn,  even  by  the  report  they  condemn,  that  to 
become  citizens  here  in  the  fullest  sense  means  their  progress 
and  elevation,  the  Bureau  will  have  done  them  the  greatest 
possible  service. 

Certainly  it  is  in  the  hearts  of  the  officers  of  the  Bureau  to 
perform  such  service  by  any  legitimate  means  in  their  power. 
This  sentiment  has  actuated  them  in  announcing  this  hear- 
ing. Mr.  H.  A.  Dubuque  of  Fall  River  will  conduct  the 
hearing  for  the  French.  I  wish  to  say  to  you  now,  however, 
that  I  have  not  summoned  a  single  witness  here.  I  have  not 
asked  any  one  to  come  here  in  opposition  to  the  views  you 
may  express,  or  in  favor  of  the  statements  which  were  made 
to  the  agents  of  tlie  Bureau  by  the  manufacturers  and  opera- 
tives throughout  the  States  which  we  canvassed. 

Mr.  Dubuque  can  carry  on  the  hearing  in  his  own  way. 
I  will  only  ask  you  to  be  as  brief  as  possible  in  your  state- 
ments. 

Mr.  Dubuque.  Honored  gentlemen  of  the  Bureau  of  Sta- 
tistics of  Labor,  —  It  devolves  upon  me  to  open  this  hearing 
on  behalf  of  the  French  Canadians  who  have  been  called  here 
to  give  their  evidence  relative  to  certain  statements  contained 
in  the  Twelfth  Annual  Report  of  this  Bureau.  Before,  how- 
ever, proceeding  to  present  the  evidence  before  you,  gentle- 
men, I  wish  to  impress  upon  your  minds  the  abnormal  atti- 
tude in  which  the  French  are  placed  before  you.  Accusations 
have  been  made  against  them  in  a  report  made  by  the  Bureau 
appointed  by  State  authority.  These  accusations  are  pre- 
sumed to  be  true,  and  taken  to  be  true,  to  a  certain  extent; 
and  we  are  called  upon  here  to  refute  them. 

Of  course,  we  understand,  gentlemen,  that  this  hearing  Is 
somewhat  informal.  We  cannot  proceed  as  we  would  in  a 
court  of  justice.  We  must  obtain  the  facts  as  best  we  may 
with  the  means  at  hand,  and  if  certain  parties  are  not  obliged 


i 


THE  CANADIAN  FRENCH. 


IS 


to  come  and  testify  we  must  rely  upon  the  good  will  of  those 
who  are  willing.  We  feel  more  keenly  the  sting  of  these 
accusations,  for  there  they  stand  in  black  and  white ;  there  is 
material  which  will  go  to  write  the  history  either  of  the 
Republic,  of  the  Commonwealth  of  Miwsachusetts,  or  of  the 
French  Canadians  in  this  State  or  in  the  country.  That  is 
opposed  to  the  fundamental  law,  laid  down  in  the  Constitu- 
tion, that  no  one  shall  be  accused  unless  he  has  the  ridit  and 
the  advantage  of  being  confronted  by  his  accuser.  I  do  not 
say  this,  gentlemen  of  this  Bureau,  because  I  want  to  blame 
you.  You  are,  as  it  were,  a  reflection  of  the  evidence  which 
has  been  presented  to  you.  Your  duty  is  that  of  a  court  of 
justice,  or  a  master  in  chancery  presenting  his  report  accord- 
ing to  the  state  of  the  f;icts  as  they  have  come  to  his  knowl- 
edge, and  then  letting  the  court,  or,  in  this  instance,  the 
legislature  or  public  opinion,  pass  upon  the  report. 

Gentlemen,  I  do  not  wish  to  say  that  you  have  not  done 
your  duty;  but  this  Bureau,  even  with  all  the^ood  will  that 
it  could  have,  with  all  the  kind  feelings  towards  the  French 
people  that  it  has  had,  has  done  us  an  injustice.  You  have 
felt  it  yourselves,  gentlemen,  because  you  have  summoned  us 
to  come  here  to-day  to  present  to  you  evidence  to  refute  the 
facts  which  you  have  stated. 

Now,  if  we  are  to  consider  this  statement  as  an  allegation 
in  a  civil  cause,  are  we  going  to  say  that  the  allegations  of 
the  plaintiff  or  complainant  are  taken  to  be  true,  and  the 
defendant  called  upon  to  prove  that  they  are  false  ? 

Now,  wi£h  these  few  remarks,  gentlemen,  we  want  to  pro- 
ceed in  the  best  spirit  possible.  You  have  expressed  the 
desire  of  getting  at  the  truth  in  the  matter  relating  to  the 
French  people.  You  have  said  further,  Mr.  Chief  of  this 
Bureau,  that  the  statement  contained  in  the  report  did  not 
apply  to  the  French  people  in  Massachusetts.  It  is  to  be 
regretted,  indeed,  that  we  did  not  know  of  this  fact,  this 
very  essential  fact,  till  only  a  very  few  days  before  this  hear- 
ing ;  because,  as  you  know,  Mr.  Chief  and  gentlemen  of  this 
Bureau,  the  French  Canadians  in  this  State  number  one  hun- 
dred thousand.  As  you  know,  the  French  are  more  numer- 
ous in  Massachusetts  than  in  any  other  State  in  the  Union : 
therefore  this  report  which  applied  to  all  the  French  of  the 
Eastern  States — as  we  understood  it  —  we  in  Massachusetts 


\>. 


14 


STATISTICS  OF  LABOR. 


'1 


have  felt  the  sting  of  it  as  well  as  it  has  been  felt  in  other 
States. 

I  am  willing  to  admit,  Mr.  Chief  of  this  Bureau,  that  it 
was  not  intended  by  this  Bureau  to  apply  the  statements  to 
any  but  special  cases  outside  of  Massachusetts,  and  to  special 
localities ;  but  we  read  by  the  very  words  of  this  report  that 
it  treats  of  the  question  of  the  schools,  that  where  compul- 
sory education  exists  the  French  have  "lied  with  brazen 
effrontery  "  about  the  age  of  their  children.  Now,  of  course 
you  know,  gentlemen  of  this  Bureau,  that  in  all  the  Eastern 
States,  in  all  the  New  England  States,  you  have  not  the  same 
law  regarding  compulsory  education  that  you  have  in  Massa- 
chusetts ;  consequently,  where  the  law  exists  and  is  enforced 
so  strictly  as  it  is  here,  we  have  considered  that  the  words 
relating  to  the  school  laws  applied  to  the  Canadians  of 
Massachusetts,  and  we  have  come  here  prepared  to  present 
facts  from  Massachusetts  to  show  you  that  these  statements 
are  not  founded  upon  truth. 

We  have  come  before  you,  also,  gentlemen  of  this  Bureau, 
with  evidence  concerning  the  social  and  moral  condition  of 
the  French  in  New  York,  in  New  Hampshire,  in  Connecticut, 
in  Maine,  and  in  Massachusetts.  We  have  come  here  with 
evidence  concerning  the  French  in  various  localities  and  va- 
rious places  in  Massachusetts,  where  they  are  in  large  num- 
bers and  mostly  engaged  in  working  in  the  manufactories. 
We  have  come  here  of  our  own  free  will.  Of  course  we  are 
grateful  to  you  who  have  given  us  an  opportunity  to  refute 
publicly,  before  this  Bureau,  the  statements  which  have  been 
made  against  us ;  but  it  is  to  be  regretted,  I  repeat  again, 
that,  when  these  statements  were  recorded  against  the  French 
people  by  the  oflBcers  of  this  Bureau,  no  one  was  asked,  on 
the  part  of  the  French  who  were  accused  —  condemned  by 
the  report — to  come  and  refute  the  facts  given  against  them. 
It  is  to  be  regretted,  gentlemen. 

We  do  not  wish  to  blame  you ;  you  have  done  your  duty 
as  you  thought  best,  and  we  consider  that  you  have  endeav- 
ored to  be  as  impartial  as  man  can  be  when  he  is  swayed  by 
the  opinions  of  others,  whether  the  statements  are  made  in  a 
court  of  justice  or  before  a  legislative  committee. 

I  may  state  to  you,  gentlemen  of  the  Bureau,  that  I  am 
not  the  only  one  who  has  been  appointed  to  conduct  this 


THE   CANADIAN  FRENCH. 


16 


hearing.  We  have  been  appointed,  I  believe,  five  or  six, 
representing  different  States,  and  I  have  been  called  upon  to 
open  the  hearing  with  these  few  remarks ;  and  now,  if  other 
gentlemen  who  are  members  of  the  committee  to  conduct  the 
hearing  wish  to  state  any  thing  further  before  we  present  the 
evidence  to  you,  I  would  ask  your  kind  favor  to  hear  any 
suggestions  which  they  might  make.  I  would  state  to  you, 
also,  gentlemen,  that  there  are  gentlemen  here,  and  especially 
a  gentleman  from  Maine,  who  has  very  important  statistics 
concerning  the  French  Canadians.  He  is  not  very  familiar 
with  the  English  language,  but  he  will  express  himself  as 
best  he  can ;  for  all  of  us,  you  know,  cannot  use  an  acquired 
language  as  well  as  we  can  our  own.  He  and  the  other  gen- 
tlemen will  have  to  ask  your  indulgence ;  and,  if  he  cannot 
express  himself  in  any  way  which  you  can  understand,  he 
will  ask  to  be  heard  through  an  interpreter.  But  I  can  as- 
sure you  that  he  will  make  all  the  efforts  in  his  power  in 
order  to  be  understood  by  you  in  the  official  language  of  the 
hearing. 

Now,  gentlemen  of  the  Bureau,  the  first  gentleman  who 
will  give  you  evidence  will  be  Mr.  F.  Gagnon,  the  editor 
of  "Le  Travrailleur,"  a  French  paper  published  in  Worcester, 
Mass.  I  believe  it  is  the  oldest  French  Canadian  paper  pub- 
lished in  the  Eastern  States.  Mr.  Gagnon  has  sent  circulars 
to  various  cities  ^nd  towns,  and  obtained  reports,  and  he  has 
had  a  great  experience,  probably  a  larger  experience  than 
any  of  the  rest  of  us,  in  this  matter.  He  has  been  with  the 
French  people,  has  founded  religious,  educational,  and  literary 
societies  amonp  them ;  and  he  will  give  you  the  reports  he 
has  prepared  from  more  than  thirty  cities  and  towns. 

Mr.  Gagnon  represents  a  delegation  from  Worcester  con- 
sisting, besides  himself,  of  Rev.  J.  B.  Primeau,  pastor  of  the 
church  of  Notre  Dame  des  Canadiens;  and  Mr.  Charles 
Lalime,  immigration  agent  of  the  Canadian  Government. 

Mr.  Feed.  Gagnon  then  said :  Mr.  Carroll  D.  Wright, 
Chief  of  the  Bureau  of  Labor  Statistics  for  the  Common- 
wealth of  Massachusetts,  in  his  Twelfth  Annual  Report  has 
published  the  evidence  furnished  the  Bureau  t!iat  the  pres- 
ence of  the  French  Canadians  is  an  obstacle  to  the  adoption 
of  the  ten-hour  system  of  labor  in  certain  States ;  and  that 
the  French  Canadians  are  a  horde  of  industrial  invaders  car- 


16 


STATISTICS  OF  LABOR. 


ing  nothing  for  the  institutions  of  this  country,  neglecting  to 
become  citizens,  living  in  a  beggarly  way,  trying  to  evade 
the  provisions  of  the  school  laws,  being  a  sordid  and  low 
people,  and  fit  only  to  work  under  any  kind  of  rulers  and  for 
any  scale  of  prices.  It  is  the  first  time  that  such  slanderj  of 
a  national  element  find  a  place  in  an  official  document. 
Mr.  Wright  says  that  he  was  officially  obliged  to  include 
in  the  document  all  that  was  reported  to  him.  While,  how- 
ever, we  admit  this  obligation,  we  regret  the  expressions 
which  have  been  used  to  illustrate  the  reports  of  his  inform- 
ants. We  acknowledge  that  in  order  to  indicate  his  sense 
of  fair  play  and  justice  he  has  called  this  meeting  for  a 
hearing. 

We  come  to  refute  opinions  given  ex  partem  and  to  reform 
the  verdict  based  on  them.  This  situation  is  quite  abnormal ; 
but  we  rely  upon  the  justice  of  our  cause,  and  the  impartiality 
of  the  tribune  before  which  we  present  our  evidence ;  and  we 
say  that  the  informants  of  the  Bureau  have  taken,  in  every 
town  or  city  hom  whence  they  reported,  the  exceptional  for 
the  general. 

Moreover  we  say  that  malice,  prejudice,  and  very  probably 
individual  interest,  were  the  chief  denunciators  of  our  country- 
men. And,  moreover,  we  say  that  considering  the  circum- 
stances under  which  the  Canadians  emigrate  to  this  country; 
speaking,  as  they  do,  a  language  different  from  the  idiom 
spoken  in  the  United  States ;  they  can  show  a  record  within 
the  last  ten  years  that  no  other  national  element  can  exhibit. 

Moreover,  we  say  that,  comparatively,  considering  their 
number,  the  French  Canadians  do  more  for  the  general  pros- 
perity of  the  Eastern  States  than  any  other  national  element. 
Moreover,  we  say  that  the  French  Canadian  element  ought 
to  be  respected  as  others,  for  they  have  rendered  services  in 
every  manner  to  the  United  States;  establishing  cities, 
counties,  States ;  fighting  for  the  stars  and  stripes ;  pacifying 
Indian  tribes ;  guiding  explorers  and  United  States  armies ; 
and  we  say  this  without  claiming,  in  this  case,  the  honor  to 
be  the  sons  of  France,  the  generous  friend  of  the  United 
States,  whose  alliance  was  cemented  j"^  the  blood  of  Lafay- 
ette at  Brandywine,  and  by  the  surrender  of  Comwallis  to 
Washington  and  Rochambeau  at  Yorktown. 

It  may  happen  that  ignorant  of  malicious  gossips  denounce, 


THE  CANADIAN  FRENCH. 


17 


in  their  villages,  the  French  Canadians,  because  the  farmers 
who  come  to  this  country  do  not  wear  modem  garments,  and 
have  not  the  "nobby"  appearance  of  their  traducers;  but 
ignorance  ought  not  to  prevail. 

Denouncing  a  whole  national  element  because  the  families 
in  a  village  do  not  send  their  children  to  school,  wear  poor 
clothing,  eat  poor  victuals,  is  the  act  of  a  prejudiced  man. 

The  faults  of  ten  are  not  the  faults  of  a  nation  of  nearly 
two  millions  of  individuals. 

There  was  premeditated  malice  in  the  reports  of  the  in- 
formants to  this  Bureau. 

Who  gave  the  key  note  to  these  denunciations?  The 
manufacturers  themselves,  who  send  agents  to  Canada  to  re- 
cruit factory  help. 

I  have  a  letter  from  an  agent  of  the  Boston  and  Albany 
Railroad  at  Worcester,  who  says  he  is  ready  to  testify  that 
since  two  years,  no  less  than  one  hundred  superintendents  or 
agents  of  mills  have  applied  to  him  for  French  help,  one  mill 
asking  for  as  many  as  fifty  families  at  a  time.  And  Mr.  E. 
I.  L'H^rault,  justice  of  the  peace  at  Fall  River,  could  testify 
in  the  same  manner.  Manufacturers  cannot  say  that  the 
French  Canadians  have  been  an  obstacle  to  the  system  of  ten 
hours  of  labor. 

Never,  at  any  place,  have  Canadian  help  asked  an  increase 
in  the  hours  of  labor,  and  never,  at  any  place,  have  they  been 
opposed,  as  a  body,  to  the  ten-hour  law. 

The  Canadians  are  peaceful,  law-abiding  citizens ;  and  they 
accept  the  wages  fixed  by  the  liberality,  or  sometimes  the 
cupidity  and  avarice,  of  the  manufacturers. 

Unable  to  speak  the  English  language  when  they  arrive  in 
this  country,  burdened  with  a  family,  poor  as  the  generality  of 
immigrants  are,  the  French  Canadians  have  but  to  go  to  the 
textile  factories,  and  there  accept  what  is  offered  to  them. 

After  a  few  months,  and  the  children  have  learned  a  few 
words  of  English,  being  not  satisfied  with  the  wages,  they  ask 
for  more,  and,  if  refused,  they  move  to  another  village  where 
they  expect  to  get  more.  This  perpetual  moving  displeases 
some  manufacturers ;  but  it  shows  that  our  countrymen  do 
not  try  to  reduce  the  scale  of  wages,  but  that,  on  the  con- 
trary, they  put  themselves  to  trouble  and  expense  to  get  bet- 
ter wages. 
8 


18 


STATISTICS   OP  LABOR. 


Canadians  do  not  go  back  to  their  country  in  a  large  num- 
ber, as  is  believed  by  many  manufacturers.  Leaving  their 
relatives  in  Canada,  being  at  a  short  distance  they  go  often 
to  visit  their  friends,  but  come  back  to  the  States  to  their 
usual  occupations. 

We  propose  to  overthrow  specifically,  by  logical  reasoning 
and  statistics,  all  the  misrepresentations  contained  in  the 
reports  transmitted  to  the  Bureau. 

We  have  afiBrmed  that  the  French  Canadians  have  never 
asked  for  an  increase,  nor  have  thijy  opposed  a  reduction  of 
the  hours  of  labor.  Having  many  children,  the  Canadian 
emigrant  living  in  factory  towns  cares  for  his  family.     He 


t.*^' 


;'»•" 


NAMK8  OF  PLACES. 

Total  populu 
tion.     t!on- 
Hus  of  1880. 

Canadian 
population. 

Canadian 

real  estate 

owners. 

School 
children. 

Maink 

36,407 

13,125 

25 

^ 

Blddeford 

la,652 

6,500 

- 

- 

Lewiston 

19,U83 

5,000 

25 

- 

WatecviUo 

4,672 

1,625 

- 

- 

New  Uampbiiire  .... 

26,241 

6,100 

75 

3,576 

(Jrcat  Falls 

7,000* 

2,500 

15 

400 

Nashua 

13,453 

3,000 

51 

2,626 

Rochester 

6,788 

600 

9 

660 

MASSACHnSET-JS      .... 

280,640 

46,463 

974 

44,448 

Fall  Klver 

49,006 

11,000 

100 

9,763 

Fltchburg 

12,405 

400 

10 

2,200 

Gardner 

4,988 

768 

73 

811 

Hav^hlll 

18,475 

3,200 

80 

3,500 

Ilolyoke 

Hudson 

21,851 

6,600 

75 

4.640 

3,739 

460 

32 

617 

Indian  Orchard  .... 

3,000 

1,653^^ 
3  500  I'V 

;•           Ifl 

266 

Lawrence 

39,178 

40 

4,373 

Man<5haug 

1,829* 

1,047 

16 

140 

Millbury 

4,741 

1,300 

36 

966 

New  Bedford       .... 

26,875 

1,200 

13 

3,000 

Northampton       .... 

12,172 

1,360 

41 

1,823 

North  Brookfleld 

4,459 

800* 

40 

835 

Southbridge        .... 

6,485 

3,100 

81 

1,275 

Spencer       

Webster 

7,466 

3,450 

140 

1,200 

5,696 

2,400 

32 

1,160 

Worpester   .       '. 

58,296 

4,327 

150 

8,000 

Rhode  Island     .... 

18,053 

8,400 

116 

2,406 

Manvllle 

2,000* 

1,400 

16 

206 

Wooi(lBOcket        .... 

16,063 

7,000 

100 

2,200 

Connecticut        .... 

30,574 

7,075 

194 

1,678 

*•-  >ialtlc 

TJrosyenordale  t  .... 

3,207 

1,925 

12 

878 

3,200 

2,400 

12 

400 

Merlden 

18,340 

1,160 

20 

- 

Putnam 

5,827 

1,600 

150 

400 

New  York 

25,962 

7,500 

1,132. 

4,775 

Champlaln 

6,407 

1,850 

32 

276 

Glens  Falls  and  vicinity     . 

12,272 

1,650 

100 

2,500 

Platteburg 

8,283 

4,000 

1.000 

2,000 

Totals 

417,877 

88,663 

2,616 

56,883 

f  Two  viUagea. 


*  Estimated. 


THE  CANADIAN  FRENCH. 


U 


and  his  children  do  not  generally  take  side  with  strikers  when 
strikes  occur,  and  for  this  reason  the  prejudices  go  against 
the  law-abiding  Canadian.  Is  it  not  probable  that  many  of 
the  informants  of  the  Bureau  were  men  who  had  already 
been  engaged  in  strikes,  and  that  Canadians  did  not  follow 
them?    And  hence  the  malice. 

During  the  last  ten  years  the  Eastern  States  have  received 
the  greatest  bulk  of  the  Canadian  immigration,  and  already 
we  count  over  thirty  churches  built  by  them,  many  schools, 
and  a  great  many  are  real  estate  owners. 

We  have  the  statistics  of  thirty-two  cities  and  villages 
where  Canadians  are  to  be  found  in  great  numbers.  They 
are  as  follows :  — 


Canadian 

HCllOOl 

children. 

Canadian 

Naturalized 

Canadlana 

holdinK 

publlo  offlco. 

Canadian  mer- 
chants   and 

Canadian 

8chooU. 

Canadians. 

professional 
men. 

tradesmen. 

000 

9 

725 

3 

19 

198 

600* 

4 

475 

_ 

8 

60 

800 

5 

IbO 

3 

10 

104 

- 

- 

100 

- 

1 

44 

740 

3 

245 

6 

38 

89 

160 

2 

40 

- 

12 

20 

600 

_ 

180 

6 

21 

62 

90 

1 

25 

- 

6 

7 

7,863 

20 

1,633 

23 

325 

1,211 

2,000 

8 

200 

2 

14 

814 

30 

- 

30 

- 

1 

_ 

103 

1 

46 

_ 

2 

2 

4'i5 

1 

85 

- 

60 

31 

1,009 

1 

150 

5 

66 

91 

93 

- 

40 

1 

3 

6 

198 

1 

68 

1 

15 

39 

400 

1 

100 

- 

25 

80 

130 

1 

47 

- 

1 

0 

150 

- 

30 

1 

1 

12 

250» 

1 

25 

- 

15 

16 

240 

- 

65 

1 

26 

- 

200 

_ 

20 

1 

4 

13 

626 

1 

104 

4* 

20 

16 

660 

2 

140 

4 

14 

40 

460 

1 

105 

- 

25 

34 

860 

1 

288 

3 

33 

69 

*        736 

4 

112 

8 

18 

814 

135 

1 

12 

- 

15 

40 

600 

3 

100 

8 

3 

274 

095 

2 

265 

7 

86 

80 

235 

1 

40 

5 

16 

26 

800 

1 

35 

1 

15 

2S 

160 

- 

40 

- 

5 

17 

300 

— 

150 

1 

60 

18 

!>,183 

2 

1,600 

7 

63 

123 

225 

1 

150 

3 

2 

46 

625 

1 

260 

3 

10 

18 

1,333 

1,200 

1 

61 

69 

13,406 

40 

4,480 

53 

549 

2,014 

90 


STATISTICS   OF  LABOR. 


.1 


What  do  we  learn  from  these  statistics  ? 

These  thirty-two  different  places  have  a  population  of 
417,877,  and  of  this  number  88,658  are  Canadians  —  more 
than  one-fifth  of  the  whole. 

These  88,658  Canadians  represent  about  10,000  families, 
and  of  these  we  find  that  2,516  have  a  home  and  own  a  house 
in  the  United  States.  More  than  twenty-five  hundred  I  Is 
there  a  better  signification  that  the  Canadians  are  not  wander- 
ing Jews,  but  that,  on  the  contrary,  they  settle  here  to  make 
a  home  ? 

Mark,  gentlemen,  that  in  certain  towns  the  manufacturing 
companies  oblige  their  employes  to  dwell  in  the  tenements  of 
the  company ;  that  in  many  towns  these  companies  do  not 
sell  land  to  individuals,  and,  consequently,  in  such  places 
Canadians  cannot  become  real  estate  owners.  We  shall  com- 
pare two  groups,  for  example :  — 

Grosvenordale,  Conn.,  has  (including  Mechanicsville)  a 
population  of  2,400  Canadians,  and  12  real  estate  owners. 
At  Gardner,  Mass.,  where  the  Canadian  population  is  only 
766,  we  have  73  real  estate  owners. 

Spencer,  Mass.,  has  140  Canadian  real  estate  owners,  the 
Canadian  population  being  3,450.  This  number  of  Canadian 
real  estate  owners  is  astonishing  when  it  is  an  acknowledged 
fact  that  the  mass  of  these  emigrants  have  been  in  the  East- 
ern States  during  fifteen  years  only.  It  has  been  said  in  the 
report  that  the  Canadians  did  not  send  their  children  to  school, 
and  that  they  try  to  evade  the  tenure  of  the  law.  This  is 
given  as  a  generality  in  the  report.  Now  let  us  examine  our 
statistics.  We  find  that  thirty-two  towns  or  cities  send 
56,883  children  to  the  schools,  and  of  this  number  13,406,  or 
23-j-  per  cent,  are  Canadian  children.  And  we  also  find  that 
these  Canadians,  called  "the  Chinese  of  the  East,"  have 
religion  enough,  patriotism  enough,  to  have  forty  French  and 
English  Catholic  schools  in  these  thirtj  -two  cities  and  towns. 

We  acknowledge  that  some  of  the  new  comers,  too  poor, 
and  unable  to  speak  English,  —  and  the  wages  being  low,  — 
art  obliged  to  send  children  to  the  mills  against  the  law  of 
humanity,  and,  in  Massachusetts,  against  the  State  law.  But 
who  is  the  most  guilty?  Is  it  not  the  manufacturer  who 
gives  employment  to  young  children  of  eight  or  nine  years  of 
age  for  merely  nominal  salary  ?    These  children,  belonging 


THE  CANADIAN  FRENCH. 


to  poor  families,  are  submittpni  to  a  daily  task  of  nine  or  ten 
hours,  for  thirty  cents  a  clay.  Why  does  not  the  manu- 
facturer cut  the  evil  at  its  root,  and  refuse  employment  to 
these  poor  little  ones,  pay  a  little  more  to  the  adult  members 
of  these  families,  and  give  the  children  a  chance  to  have  an 
education?  But  no!  These  manufacturers  complain  of  the 
ignorance  of  tho  Canadian  children,  and  they  try  to  get  them 
at  their  mills  for  a  few  cents  a  day.  Yet,  notwithstanding 
the  opportunity  offered  by  the  cupidity  of  the  manufacturer, 
few  parents  only  evade  the  school  law. 

Tho  statistics  above  given  demonstrate  that  Canadians 
send  their  children  to  school ;  for  more  than  twenty-two  per 
cent  of  tho  school  children  of  thirty-two  cities  and  towns  are 
Canadians. 

The  report  says  that  Canadians  do  not  care  to  vote, — 
another  error.  The  informants  had  forgotten,  probably,  that 
the  law  requires  a  residence  of  five  years  in  this  country  for 
an  alien  to  become  a  citizen.  In  Massachusetts  the  law 
requires  that  a  man  to  be  a  voter  shall  read  the  Constitution 
in  the  English  language.  In  Rhode  Island  the  law  requires 
that  a  foreigner  shall  be  a  real  estate  owner  to  vote.  In  New 
Hampshire  the  Constitution  says  that  no  Catholic  shall  be 
elected  to  office.  With  such  liberality  —  which  is  a  real 
barrier  to  universal  suffrage  —  it  is  yet  surprising  to  see  so 
many  Canadians  who  are  citizens  of  the  United  States. 

In  these  thirty-two  cities  and  towns  4,480  Canadians  are 
American  citizens,  and  more  than  53  of  them  hold  public 
office.  One  is  a  member  of  the  legislature  of  Connecticut, 
one  is  a  town  treasurer,  many  are  aldermen,  councilmen, 
selectmen,  members  of  the  school  committee,  etc.  Many 
have  declared  already  their  intention  to  become  citizens. 
Our  national  conventions,  our  newspapers,  our  local  organiza- 
tions, urge  on  the  question  of  citizenship  with  very  satisfac- 
tory results.  Let  the  young  generation,  which  speaks  the 
English  language,  grow  a  few  years  more,  and  politicians  will 
have  to  count  with  us. 

The  report  says  that  Canadians  live  in  a  beggarly  way. 
Very  few  of  them  do ;  and  it  is  acknowledged  by  our  mer- 
chants, by  our  pastors,  that  Canadians  spend  every  thing  they 
earn  for  the  food  and  clothing  of  their  families.  If  it  was 
not  so,  we  should  not  see  so  many  Canadians  engaged  in 
different  trades. 


22 


STATISTICS   OF  LABOR. 


In  the  thirty-two  cities  and  towns  above  mentioned,  we 
find  549  merchants  and  professional  men  and  2,014  trades- 
men and  clerks.  These  statistics  are  abundant  evidence  that 
the  trade  of  the  French  Canadians  is  important. 

In  fact,  they  have  not  inherited  the  economy  and  frugality 
of  their  ancestors.  They  are  inclined  to  extravagance,  and 
they  scorn  with  indignation  the  expressions  used  in  the 
report  to  describe  falsely  their  way  of  living.  Because  they 
like  to  trade  -where  the  French  language  is  spoken,  some 
merchants  who  do  not  employ  French  help  may  believe  that 
Canadians  live  in  a  beggarly  way,  not  buying  much  at  their 
store.  It  is  a  great  mistake,  and  the  many  Canadian  dealers 
and  clerks,  and  the  American  merchants  in  towns  where  no 
French  Canadians  are  engaged  in  trade,  could  testify  to  the 
contrary. 

We  believe  we  have  shown,  in  the  light  of  logical  truth, 
the  error  of  the  report.  As  we  have  said  before,  informants 
have  everywhere  taken  the  exceptional  for  the  generality; 
and  for  this  reason  the  Canadians  have  protested  publicly,  as 
they  now  protest  at  this  hearing,  against  the  authenticity  of 
the  evidence  on  which  the  report  was  based.  And  they  ask 
that  the  sense  of  justice  of  Mr.  Wright  be  equal  to  the 
circumstances,  that  this  report  be  acknowledged  by  him  and 
the  Bureau  as  a  slander,  and  that  in  his  next  report  he  shall 
recognize  that  he  has  been  deceived  by  informants  prejudiced 
against  the  Canadian  element. 

Canadians  have  been  great  factors  in  the  prosperity  of 
manufacturing  interests.  Steady  workers  and  skilful,  the 
manufacturers  have  benefited  by  their  condition  of  poverty 
to  reduce  wages,  and  compete  favorably  with  the  industries 
of  the  Old  World. 

Americans  who  study  but  one  history  ~  their  own  —  do 
not  know  enough  of  the  services  rendered  to  their  country  by 
Canadians.  In  fact,  nearly  all  the  large  cities  of  the  Western 
States  have  been  established  by  Canadians.  Consult  the 
historical  societies  of  Michigan,  Illinois,  Wisconsin,  and 
Minnesota,  and  you  will  learn  to  respect  and  admire  the 
French  Canadian  element. 

From  Langlade,  the  father  of  Wisconsin;  Juneau,  the 
founder  of  Milwaukee  ;  Joseph  Robidon,  the  founder  of  St. 
Joe  Mission ;  Vital  Guerin,  the  founder  of  St.  Paul,  Minn. ; 


THE  CANADIAN  FRENCH. 


28 


Menard,  first  lieutenant  governor  of  Illinois ;  to  Jean  Louis 
Ldgare,  the  trader,  who  has  persuaded  Sitting  Bull  to  sur- 
render to  the  United  States  authorities, — the  list  is  long 
of  the  Canadians  who  have  rendered  famous  the  name  of  our 
national  element. 

In  the  Eastern  States  we  are  from  yesterday,  and  already 
we  form  quite  an  important  element  of  the  population.  And, 
if  we  have  not  yet  had  the  opportunity  of  illustrating  our 
nationality  by  great  historical  de'eds,  we  try  in  our  daily 
vocation  of  duty  to  obtain  the  respect  and  consideration  of 
our  fellow-citizens  by  our  loyalty  to  State  constitutions  and 
municipal  laws,  and  by  our  good  behavior. 

All  we  want  is  the  freedom  guaranteed  to  all  citizens,  and 
we  want  protection  against  such  slanders  as  the  informants 
of  the  Bureau  have  laid  upon  us. 

Public  spirited  citizens  whose  honor  sustains  no  stain,  we 
have  protested,  and  do  here  solemnly  protest,  against  the 
expressions  and  sentiments  of  the  informants  of  the  Bureau. 
In  the  name  of  justice  and  respect  of  decency  we  ask  that 
the  report  be  corrected  so  that  it  shall  place  our  national  ele- 
ment in  the  true  light  in  which  we  stand,  — loyal  and  honor- 
able citizens. 

Mr.  Dubuque.  Now,  gentlemen,  before  we  proceed  fur- 
ther, I  would  like  to  make  a  remark  in  regard  to  the  ten-hour 
law  in  Massachusetts.  The  people  are  under  an  impression 
that  this  ten-hour  law  applies  to  everybody  in  Massachusetts. 
The  first  law  relating  to  ten  hours  of  labor  in  Massachusetts 
was  passed  in  1842,  chap.  60,  sects.  3  and  4.  That  law  pro- 
vided that  no  child  under  ten  years  of  age  should  be  employed 
more  than  ten  hours  per  day,  and  the  penalty  was  i50  fine 
for  a  violation  of  the  law.  That  law  has  been  incorporated 
in  the  General  Statutes,  chap.  42,  sect.  3,  published  in  1860. 
Later,  in  1867,  by  statute  of  1867,  285,  sects.  1,  2,  3,  and  4, 
it  was  provided  that  no  child  under  fifteen  years  of  age  should 
be  employed  more  than  sixty  hours  per  week.  That  is  the 
progress  of  the  ten-hour  law  in  this  State.  Under  the  stat- 
ute of  1842  no  child  under  ten  years  shall  be  employed  more 
than  ten  hours  a  day,  and  thence  to  1867,  when  the  law  pro- 
vides that  no  child  under  fifteen  shall  be  employed  more  than 
sixty  hours  per  week.  Then  influence  brought  to  bear  on 
the  legislature  caused  the  so-called  ten-hour  law  to  be  passed 


I 


24 


STATISTICS  OF  LABOR. 


in  1874.  It  provides  that  "  no  child  under  eighteen  years  of 
age,  and  no  woman  over  that  age,  shall  be  employed  in  the 
manufactures  more  than  ten  hours  per  day."  It  does  not  say 
that  no  man  shall  be  employed.  It  does  not  apply  to  men. 
The  manufacturer  has  no  right  to  employ  a  child  under  eigh- 
teen years  or  a  woman  of  any  age  more  than  sixty  hours  per 
week,  having  the  right  to  divide  the  hours  of  labor  so  that 
they  will  not  amount  to  more  than  sixty  hours  per  week. 

Now,  in  1876  there  came  a  continuation  of  that  same  prog- 
ress ;  and  the  legislature  of  1876  by  chap.  52,  sects.  1,  2,  3, 
and  4,  enacted,  "  no  child  under  ten  years  shall  be  employed 
at  all  in  the  manufactories,  and  no  child  under  fourteen  years 
shall  be  employed  unless  he  attend  school  twenty  weeks  in  a 
year." 

Then  in  1878,  by  chap.  171,  sect.  1,  the  legislature  author- 
ized the  school  committees  to  approve  private  schools,  the 
teaching  as  well  in  private  schools  as  in  public  schools  —  and 
then,  in  1879,  struck  the  word  "  wilful "  out  of  the  ten-hour 
law,  so  that  it  might  be  more  effectually  enforced. 

So  we  are  to  understand  that  the  law  applies  to  children 
under  eighteen,  and  also  to  women.  It  does  not  apply  to 
men.  It  is  not  a  law  which  forbids  the  manufacturers  from 
employing  men  more  than  ten  hours  a  day.  Of  course  it 
was  one  way  of  getting  at  the  object  in  view,  but  still  we 
want  to  understand  the  law  as  it  is.  Now,  if  Mr.  Gagnon 
will  be  kind  enough  to  give  us  his  statistics. 

Mr.  Gagnon.  The  statistics  have  been  given  in  bulk  in 
my  remarks.  I  have  them  here,  and  they  can  bo  consulted 
by  the  Bureau ;  the  questions  are  here,  and  the  answers.^ 

Mr.  Dubuque.  Will  you  please  state  to  the  Bureau  how 
you  have  proceeded  in  order  to  get  these  reports,  so  we  may 
get  at  the  way  in  which  you  have  collected  the  statistics  ? 

Mr.  Gagnon.  These  blanks  were  addressed  to  some 
prominent  citizen,  and  the  response  came  from  him. 

Q,  You  have  printed  how  many  circulars,  and  sent  to  the 
various  towns  ? 

A.    I  have  thirty-two  answers  here. 

Q.    You  have  senc  a  great  number  ? 

A.    I  have  sent  forty-four.    That  is  all. 

1  In  this  report  of  the  hearing,  these  statistics  have  been  presented  in  tabu- 
lar form  in  connection  with  Mr,  Gagnon's  remarks, 


THE  CANADIAN  FRENCH. 


25 


Q.    And  these  circulars  have  been  printed  by  you  ? 
A.    By  me. 

Q.  At  your  office  in  Worcester,  and  sent  to  the  most 
prominent  French  citizens  that  you  knew  in  the  various 
towns  ? 

A.     Yes,  sir. 

Q.  And  you  have  received  the  answers  which  you  have 
given? 

A.     Yes,  sir ;  they  are  signed. 

Mr.  Dubuque.  We  want  to  state  further  that  we  have 
evidence  to  offer  on  this  point;  it  is  stated  that  we  are 
opposed  to  the  ten-hour  law. 

Mr.  Wright.     No  ;  I  think  there  is  no  such  statement. 

Mr.  Dubuque.  "  The  third  objection  to  the  ten  hours  is 
the  presence  of  the  Canadian  French." 

Mr.  Wright.  I  do  not  think  it  is  stated  anywhere  that 
the  French  Canadians  have  opposed  the  law. 

Mr.  Dubuque.  No  ;  but  that  their  presence  is  opposed  to 
the  ten-hour  law.  Now,  we  want  to  state  what  the  action  of 
the  Canadians  has  been  in  Massachusetts,  and  why  they  have 
not  entered  into  that  movement. 

Mr.  Wright.  To  set  you  right,  so  that  there  shall  be  no 
misunderstpnding,  let  me  say  that,  as  I  understood  the  tes- 
timony, the  presence  of  the  French  Canadians  was  urged  as 
an  objection  to  the  ten-hour  law  on  account  of  their  migratory 
customs  and  habits  which  it  has  alleged  they  had ;  not  on 
account  of  any  movement  of  their  own,  but  that  manufac- 
turers objected  tj  taking  up  any  reformatory  movements  for 
the  elevation  of  a  people  that  were  not  going  to  stay  among 
them. 

Mr.  Dubuque.  I  want  to  state  this,  which  will  bear  upon 
the  question,  as  you  will  see  in  a  moment,  that  what  brought 
about  the  ten-hour  law  in  1874  —  I  have  lived  in  Fall  River 
for  ten  years,  and  know  something  about  these  things  —  what 
brought  about  this  ten-hour  law  in  1874  was  started  b}'^  a  great 
movement  In  Fall  River,  first  by  a  strike,  —  the  argument  be- 
ing by  intimidation,  violation  of  law,  rows,  public  demonstra- 
tions, which  were  converting  the  whole  city  into  a  state 
of  rebellion.  Now  we  want  to  introduce  evidence  to  show 
that  the  Canadian  French,  wherever  a  strike  has  taken  place, 
wherever  any  of  these  public  demonstrations  against  law  and 


w 


26 


STATISTICS  OF  LABOR. 


m  ■ 


order  in  any  place  have  been  made,  have  never  taken  part  in 
the  movement,  and  have  staid  at  home  like  good  law-abiding 
citizens ;  in  a  measure  that  has  created  a  prejudice  against 
them,  ajid  made  other  nationalities  believe  that  they  were 
opposed  to  a  ten-hour  law,  while,  on  the  contrary,  they  were 
staying  at  home  like  good  law-abiding  citizens,  not  wanting 
to  be  mixed  up  in  any  breach  of  the  peace. 

Mr.  Wright.  You  will  introduce  testimony,  if  I  under- 
stand you,  to  show  that  the  French  Canadians,  on  account  of 
their  non-participation  in  strikes,  have  incurred  the  enmity 
of  agitators? 

Mr.  Dubuque.    Yes,  sir. 

Mr.  Wright.     What  are  known  as  "  labor  reformers  "  ? 

Mr.  Dubuque.    Yes-,  sir. 

Mr.  Wright.  Do  you  think  any  testimony  from  them 
would  be  particularly  unfriendly  to  the  French  ? 

Mr.  Dubuque.  Yes,  sir,  by  reason  of  their  abstaining  from 
taking  part  in  any  of  these  movements  in  which  were  mixed 
up  these  violations  of  law.  The  French  people  have  kept 
away,  have  been  advised  by  their  ministers,  by  their  leaders, 
to  keep  away,  to  keep  within  the  law,  and  to  respect  the  laws 
of  the  Commonwealth.  That  has  been  the  reason  why  they 
have  not  entered  into  this  movement;  and  it  has  given  the 
opinion  that  they  were  opposed  to  it,  or  that  their  presence 
was  an  objection  to  it. 

Mr.  Wright.  I  want  to  ask  Mr.  Gagnon  if  it  has  been 
the  policy  of  the  French  Canadians  in  the  United  States  or 
of  the  leaders,  those  whom  you  might  call  the  principal  men, 
to  advocate  the  doctrine  of  repatriation  ? 

Mr.  Gagnon.     Yes,  sir ;  I  have  been  an  agent,  myself. 

Q.     That  has  been  the  policy  ? 

A.  That  has  been  the  policy,  to  take  out  from  this  coun- 
try families  which,  it  was  evident,  would  not  succeed  in  the 
mills. 

Q.     Is  that  the  policy  now  ? 

A.  Every  thing  is  stopped.  The  government  of  the 
Province  of  Quebec  have  no  more  subsidy  to  repatriate  with, 
so,  for  two  years,  nothing  has  been  done ;  and  it  is  the  reason 
it  partially  failed. 

Q.  They  are  now,  after  that  failure,  feeling  more  perma- 
nent, and  even  some  of  those  are  returning  who  had  repatri- 
ated? 


THE  CANADIAN  FRENCH. 


27 


A.  Well,  some  are  returning,  yet  but  few  repatriated ;  and 
during  the  repatriation  movement  the  Canadians  were  just 
as  anxious  to  stay  as  since :  we  could  not  repatriate  them  in 
large  numbers,  I  mean. 

Mr.  Dubuque.  For  the  information  of  this  Bureau,  it 
would  be  well  to  state,  also,  that  the  condition  of  the  French 
now  is  different  from  what  it  was  five,"^  or  six,  or  ten,  years 
ago.  The  French  to-day  have  become  more  familiar  with 
the  institutions,  and  more  familiar  with  the  language  and  the 
ways  of  living,  of  the  American  people,  than  they  were  five  or 
ten  years  ago  when  they  first  came.  For  instance,  in  Fall 
River  we  had,  about  ten  years  ago,  some  five  hundred  French 
citizens :  to-day  we  have  eleven  thousand  in  a  population  of 
forty-nine  thousand, 

Mr.  Wright.  Mr.  Gagnon,  are  there  places  either  in  New 
York  or  Connecticut,  for  instance,  —  because  it  was  from 
those  States  that  the  testimony  came  to  us  principally,  —  are 
there  places  in  those  two  States  where  the  statements  made 
to  the  Bureau  would  be  applicable  to  any  great  extent,  or 
even  applicable  during  the  last  ten  years? 

Mr.  Gagnon.  It  may  be,  sir,  in  those  States,  because 
the  people  have  migrated  more  from  these  factory  places  on 
account  of  the  failure  of  the  Spragues.  They  were  obliged 
to  go  to  othCi:  places  on  account  of  the  failure  of  these  mills, 
and  they  lost  considerable  money  in  Baltic  on  account  of  that 
failure ;  they  had  money  deposited  in  the  banks,  and  were 
losers. 

Q.  Is  it  your  idea  that  the  financial  depressions  following 
the  year  1873  had  an  influence  in  bringing  about  the  condi- 
tions alleged  in  the  report? 

A.  Yes,  sir,  and  also  that  in  Connecticut  villages  the 
manufacturer  is  the  king  of  the  place,  and  they  cannot  own 
land  as  in  Massachusetts,  and  in  Maine,  and  in  New  York, 
without  being  citizens. 

Q.  You  mean,  they  cannot  be  citizens  without  being  real 
estate  owners  ? 

A.  I  mean,  that,  should  their  death  occur,  if  they  were 
not  citizens  the  State  can  claim  their  real  estate. 

Rev.  Father  Millet  of  Nashua.  The  Canadian  Gov- 
ernment, —  and  I  look  upon  this  point  as  important,  as  bear- 
ing upon  the  question, — the  Canadian  Government,  not  only 


:ii 


28 


STATISTICS  OF  LABOR. 


1: 

i 


here,  but  in  the  different  countries  of  Europe,  —  I  have  seen 
them  myself,  in  England,  in  Belgium,  and  iu  France,  estab- 
lish agencies,  with  well-paid  officials,  endeavoring  to  draw 
towards  Canadr,  a  current  of  immigration  ;  and  here,  in  the 
States  ao  well  as  in  Europe,  these  agencies  were  established. 
What  kind  of  success  they  were  in  Europe,  it  is  not  the  ques- 
tion ;  but  in  the  States  it  is  well  to  note  down  that  it  was  a 
total  failure.  That  is,  not  perfectly  total,  but  by  an  immense 
majority  it  was  a  failure,  so  much  so  that  the  government  has 
ceased  to  subsidize  these  agencies. 

Mr.  Wright.  If  I  understand  you,  the  attempt  was  made 
by  the  Canadian  Government  to  repatriate  French  Canadians 
from  the  United  States  ? 

Father  Millet.  Yes,  sir ;  not  only  that,  but  great  induce- 
ments were  offered  if  they  would  return ;  and  some  of  them 
did  return,  but  of  those  who  did  go  a  certain  proportion  re- 
turned to  the  States  again,  and  in  a  majority  of  places  the 
thing  was  a  total  failure,  so  much  so,  that  the  subsidy  which 
was  given  has  been  withdrawn. 

Q.     So  that  the  work  of  repatriation  has  ceased  ? 

A.  It  is  the  desire  of  the  government  that  they  should 
return,  but  it  has  ceased  to  pay ;  though  it  encourages  immi- 
gration to  all  parts  of  Canada,  it  has  ceased  to  subsidize 
these  agencies. 

Q.  Now,  let  me  ask  you,  Father  Millet,  one  other  ques- 
tion, because  you  seem  to  be  the  best  man  to  ask  it  of,  has 
it  been  the  policy  of  the  Church  to  which  the  French  Cana- 
dians mostly  belong  in  Canada,  to  urge  repatriation  now  or 
at  any  time  w'thin  the  past  ten  years  ? 

A.  The  Church  in  Canada,  as  represented  by  its  bishops 
and  priests,  has  done  all  in  its  power  to  stop  immigration ;  but 
that  was  at  the  first. 

Q.  How  does  the  establishment  of  French  Catholic 
churches  in  America  affect  the  permanency  of  the  French 
people  here  ? 

A.  It  brings  on  what  in  Canada  was  feared,  because  in 
Canada  they  said  this  was  a  greal;  evil  for  the  country,  the 
constant  flowing  out  of  the  country  of  the  population ;  they 
desired  the  people  to  remain  there,  and,  when  we  priests 
were  sent  ig^tc  the  States  to  attend  to  their  spiritual  wants, 
it  was  only  then  that  they  saw  what  the  result  of  their  action 
was,  and  that  they  could  not  bold  the  French  among  them. 


h 


I 


THE  CANADIAN  FRENCH. 


29 


Q.  Now,  am  I  right  in  this  opinion,  that  during  the  last 
five  years  the  condition  of  the  French  Canadians,  with  refer- 
ence to  their  policy  of  repatriation  and  their  desire  to  better 
themselves,  has  been  in  a  transition  state?  that  is,  that  it 
has  been  a  crucial  period  with  the  French  Canadians,  —  is 
that  true  ? 

A.  I  should  consider  that  for  the  moment  the  question 
of  repatriation  is  not  given  up,  but  partially  so. 

Q.  I  do  not  mean  that  particularly ;  but,  have  the  French 
been  in  a  transition  state,  during  the  past  five  years,  as  the 
result  of  the  establishment  and  failure  of  the  repatriation 
system  and  the  gradual  establishment  of  churches  here  ? 

A.  I  should  consider  that  especially  for  the  last  five  years 
this  has  been  partially  so.  I  look  upon  it  now  as  a  permanent 
population. 

Q.  And  that  that  permanency  has  just  begun  to  take  pos- 
itive form  ? 

Q.     You  mean,  take  it  from  ten  years  back  ? 

Mr.  Gagnon.     From  the  establishment  of  our  churches  ? 

Q.  (By  Mr.  Wright.)  From  the  establishment  of  the 
French  Canadian  churches  in  America,  —  the  permanency  of 
the  French  population  began  ? 

Father  Millet.  The  permanency  of  the  French  popula- 
tion was  secured. 

Mr.  Dubuque.    While  we  are  on  that  point  we  might 
well  call  Mr.  Lalime  of  Worcester,  who  has  been  an  agent  of 
the  government. 

Mr.  Lalime.  I  wish  to  tell  you  what  I  know  personally 
about  this  immigration  matter.  I  have  been  appointed  agent 
by  the  Federal  Government  of  Canada  in  1875,  and  I  am  still 
the  Federal  Government's  agent  for  the  New  England  States, 
—  that  is,  what  you  might  call  the  repatriation  agent.  I  wish 
to  state  this,  that,  as  stated  a  few  minutes  ago  by  the  Rev. 
Father  Millet,  this  repatriation  is  almost  a  failure,  if  it  is  not 
a  total  failure.  Why?  Because  we  have  work  in  the  New 
England  States,  because  everybody  finds  occupation,  and  our 
Canadians  will  not  go  West,  or  a  very  few  of  them.  For  the 
last  four  years,  gentlemen,  for  the  last  three  years,  we  cer- 
tainly have  not  sent  from  New  England,  more  than,  I  should 
say,  thirty  families,  —  I  mean,  sent  to  Canada  or  any  one  of  the 
provinces  of  Canada,  or  to  Manitoba.    Quite  a  number  from 


w 


Vi 


v' 


-A 


80 


STATISTICS   OF  LABOR. 


the  other  side  have  gone  to  settle  in  Minnesota  end  Dakota. 
And  I  wish  to  state,  inasmuch  as  I  understood  that  Mr. 
Wright  wanted  to  find  out  if  our  clergy  were  in  favor  of 
immigration  or  repatriation  to  Canada,  —  I  wish  to  say  this, 
that  but  very  few  of  our  clergymen  in  the  New  England 
States  have  favored  that  movement. 

Mr.  Wright.  My  point  was  this,  if  you  will  allow  me  to 
interrupt  you  a  moment :  whether  the  French  clergy  in  New 
England  or  America  had  not  acknowledged  public  influence 
here  and  in  Canada  in  this  matter  of  repatriation  ? 

Mr.  Lalime.  Yes,  sir,  that  is  just  what  I  want  to  say,  and 
that  I  can  prove.  We  have  but  very  few  clergymen  in  New 
England  who  have  favored  the  repatriation  movement.  Far 
from  it :  they  have  always  done  what  they  could  to  have  our 
people  settle  permanently  here, and  get  naturalized  and  become 
citizens.  That  we  can  prove,  any  of  us  can  prove,  in  every 
parish.     So  that  repatriation  is  almost  a  dead  letter  to-day. 

Mr.  Dubuque.  I  will  call  upon  Father  Bedard  of  Fall 
River,  if  he  will  be  kind  enough  to  give  us  some  statements 
on  the  question  of  immigration.  He  is  a  member  of  the 
clergy,  and  has  the  charge  of  a  parish  in  Fall  River ;  and  I 
will  ask  him  to  state  whether  or  not,  in  his  opinion,  the 
founding  of  parishes  for  the  French  Canadians  in  the  States 
has  not  tended  to  make  the  Canadians  settle  more  perma- 
nently in  the  States  ? 

Rev.  Father  B.  J.  B.  Bedard.  On  that  matter  I  can  say 
that  for  my  own  part,  and  knowing  the  action  of  my  friends 
of  the  clergy,  we  did  respect  that  desire  in  Canada ;  but  at 
the  same  time  we  did  not  fight  against  the  people  wishing  to 
stay  in  the  States.  More  than  that,  the  French  clergymen 
in  the  United  States,  as  can  be  proved  by  acts  and  resolu- 
tions, did  favor  the  title  "  citizen  "  and  naturalization.  It  is 
quite  natural  for  the  clergy  in  Canada  to  desire  the  people 
living  in  Canada  to  stay  there ;  but  I  do  believe  the  Amer- 
ican clergymen  will  be  the  first  to  raise  their  voice  in  favor 
of  the  permanent  settlement  of  American  citizens  in  the 
United  States.  But  we,  becoming  citizens  in  the  United 
States  or  not  becoming  citizens,  we  do  respect  the  desire  of 
the  American  population,  and  we  do  favor  it,  as  is  proved  by 
our  conventions  not  only  in  the  State  of  Massachusetts  but 
in  all  the  conventions  in  the  other  States.    So  I  believe,  Mr. 


THE  CANADIAN  FRENCH. 


81 


Wright,  you  will  have  a  good  opinion  of  the  influence  of  the 
clergy  on  the  people  in  that  matter,  and  I  believe  everybody 
will  be  inclined  to  give  credit  to  the  clergy  on  that  ques- 
tion. 

Mr.  Dubuque.  I  would  ask  you,  Father  Bedard,  how 
many  were  real  estate  owners  in  the  city  of  Fall  River, 
where  you  founded  a  parish,  before  you  came  there,  in  that 
particular  portion  included  in  your  parish  ? 

Father  Bedard.     Very  few,  very  few. 

Q.  Can  you  state  about  how  many,  to  the  best  of  your 
knowledge,  there  are  now  in  your  parish  ? 

A.  I  did  give  the  answer  in  writing  to  Mr.  Gagnon :  we 
have  DOW  about  one  hundred. 

Mr.  Wright.    Out  of  a  parish  of  how  many  members  ? 

Father  Bedard.  In  my  parish  about  a  hundred  French 
Canadians  own  property,  real  estate ;  and  I  encourage  this, 
myself,  any  time  I  can  do  it.  And  more  than  that,  one  or 
more  bishops,  coming  from  Canada  (to  Woonsocket,  R.I.) 
lately,  did  say  the  same  to  the  people  living  here,  who  intend 
to  live  here,  to  have  property,  to  encourage  the  progress  of 
this  country,  and  so  forth. 

Q.  You  do  not  hesitate  to  assert,  then,  fully,  that  the  in- 
fluence of  the  French  Church  in  America  to-day  is  in  favor 
of  permanency,  and  against  the  policy  of  repatriation  ? 

A.     Here  in  the  United  States  ? 

Q.     Here  in  the  United  States. 

A.     Yes,  sir,  I  do  believe  so. 

Q.     While,  in  the  past,  the  influence  of  the  French  Cath 
olic  Church  of  Canada  has  been  in  favor  of  repatriation  ? 

A.     Yes,  sir. 

Mr.  Gagnon.  On  that  question  of  repatriatic^.i,  —  it  was 
movement  begun  in  1875.  A  vote  of  the  legislature  of  Que- 
bec was  passed  granting  a  subsidy  of  sixty  thousand  dollars 
to  promote  this  movement  of  immigration.  And  this  money 
was  not  only  intended  for  the  Canadians  in  t^ie  States;  it 
was  intended  for  the  immigrants  from  Europe,  and  for  the 
families  of  th^i  farmers  of  the  Province  of  Queboc  who  wished 
to  make  new  homes  on  new  lands.  After  that  year  a  sub- 
sidy of  ten  thousand  dollars  was  granted  by  the  legislature, 
and  it  stopped  there.  We  sent,  —  I  was  the  agent  of  the 
government  at  that  time,  —  we  sent  about  six  hundred  fami- 


^1 


\y  ; 


hi 


ili 


m 


11  ti! 


82 


STATISTICS  OP  LABOR. 


lies  to  Canada,  and  about  three  hundred,  only,  staid  there. 
The  other  three  hundred  did  not  settle,  but  came  back  to 
this  country,  or,  if  they  did  not  come  to  this  country,  did  not 
settle  on  the  land  given  for  the  purpose  by  the  government. 
The  grant  was  this :  the  government  of  Quebec  gave  one  hun- 
dred acres  of  land  for  the  sum  of  sixty  dollars,  and  built  a 
log  house,  and  cleared  about  four  acres  of  the  land.  This, 
with  the  price  of  the  land,  amounted  to  two  hundred  dollars. 
The  settler  had  to  pay  twelve  dollars  during  five  years  with 
interest,  and  the  remaining  one  hundred  and  forty  dollars  in 
ten  years  without  interest.  That  is  all  that  was  done  for 
the  purpose  of  repatriation.  Three  years  after,  I  myself  sent 
my  letter  of  declination,  my  resignation,  to  the  government 
of  Quebec,  because  I  saw  it  was  not  necessary  to  maintain 
an  agent  here  for  nothing,  as  no  money  had  been  appropri- 
ated since  three  years  for  that  purpose.  Of  course  it  is  just 
that  the  Province  of  Quebec  wishes  to  have  as  many  of  her 
children  as  she  can  have.  She  wants  them  to  return,  if  pos- 
sible ;  but  there  has  been  no  other  urging  but  this  action 
partially  devoted  to  the  Canadians  in  the  United  States  to 
repatriate  them.  Certainly,  gentlemen,  there  are  families 
here  who  cannot  succeed  in  the  mills,  who  cannot  make  a 
home,  make  a  future  for  themselves  and  their  children ;  and 
we,  knowing  that,  try  to  take  out  those  families,  and  settle 
them  in  Canada,  or  in  the  Western  States,  on  land  to  culti- 
vate. It  is  not  so  much  repatriation  to  the  Province  of  Que- 
bec we  want,  as  to  draw  those  families  from  the  mills,  and 
settle  them  on  land.  They  were  farmers  before  coming  here, 
and  we  think  that,  trying  again  under  more  favorable  circum- 
stances, they  would  make  a  better  future  for  their  families. 

Mr.  Dubuque.  Now,  gentlemen  of  this  Bureau,  I  only 
want  to  state  another  thing  on  this  question  of  immigration, 
and  then  we  will  proceed  to  some  other  matter.  The  most 
overwhelming  fact  that  we  can  bring  to  bear  on  this  ques- 
tion is,  that  for  the  last  ten  years,  in  every  plaoe  where 
the  French  have  settled,  it  is  a  known  fact  that  they  have 
doubled,  if  not  trebled,  in  population.  Now,  if  they  were 
coming  here  and  earning  money,  and  going  back  to  Canada, 
how  could  it  be  possible  that  the  population  would  double  and 
treble  in  such  a  short  time  ?  It  must  be  that  there  is  a  new 
influx  from  Canada  right  along,  and  that  those  who  are  here 


THE  CANADIAN  FRENCH. 


38 


stay  here  continuously.  Now,  we  are  prepared  to  show  by 
various  witnesses  that  it  is  the  minority,  9he  very  small  num- 
ber, that  go  back.  Some  will  go  back,  will  he  dissatisfied ; 
a  great  many  of  them,  as  Mr.  Lalime  has  said,  go  to  Mon- 
tana, Dakota,  Kansas,  and  the  Western  States ;  and  others  go 
to  Canada,  where  they  think  they  can  do  better.  Now,  we 
have  a  gentleman  here  from  Marlborough,  Mr.  Aldrich,  who 
has  been  kind  enough  to  come  here  and  give  testimony  in 
relation  to  this  matter.  There  is  a  delegation,  I  should  say, 
from  Marlborough,  and  I  will  call  upon  Mr.  Aldrich  first. 

Hon.  S.  N.  Aldrich  said :  I  was  requested  this  morning, 
iu  behalf  of  some  of  my  Canadian  friends  in  Marlborough,  to 
come  up  here  and  say  a  word.  I  can  only  say  that,  so  far  as 
the  French  Canadians  of  Marlborough  are  concerned,  they 
are  a  quiet,  peaceful,  industrious,  and  temperate  class  among 
us.  If  you  should  go  to  Marlborough  with  me,  you  would  see, 
in  the  place  where  they  live,  what  is  called  "  French  Hill," 
and  other  parts  of  the  town,  some  of  the  best  residences  in 
the  town  occupied  by  French.  They  have  a  splendid  church  ; 
there  are  many  merchants  among  them,  dry  goods  merchants, 
provision  dealers,  and  men  engaged  in  all  sorts  of  business. 
It  is  a  fact,  as  will  appear  from  the  papers  that  will  be  pre- 
sented to  you,  the  statistics,  that  the  French  of  Marlborough 
are  a  quiet,  temperate  people,  industrious,  and  as  good  as  any 
of  our  citizens.  We  have  some  two  thousand  of  them  there, 
and  all  of  them  are  at  work,  enjoying  themselves,  building 
homes,  and,  in  fact,  about  all  of  them  have  homes,  —  and  none 
of  them  have  poor  homes ;  they  are  all  good  houses.  If  a 
stranger  went  through  our  town  to-day,  and  saw  the  homes  of 
the  workmen,  he  would  come  back  and  ask  where  our  poor 
people  are.  They  are  all  doing  well,  and  enjoying  themselves. 
I  don't  know  as  I  can  add  any  thing  more  to  the  statistics 
which  will  be  presented  to  you  from  the  clergymen  and  traders 
and  others  in  regard  to  them. 

Mr.  Dubuque.  You  are  an  ex-senator  of  the  State,  I 
believe. 

Mr.  Aldrich.    I  wes  a  senator  three  years  ago. 

Q.  Now,  Mr.  Aldrich,  how  long  has  that  condition  of  the 
French  people,  as  you  have  stated,  existed  in  Marlborough,  — 
about  when  did  they  first  come  there  to  settle,  to  your  best 
recollection? 


■■',,■ 


*i 


84 


STATISTICS  OF  LABOR. 


A.  Well,  sir,  I  went  to  Marlborough  some  seventeen  years 
ago.  At  that  tini» there  were  a  very  few  French  Canadians 
there,  and  from  that  time  up  to  the  present  they  have  been 
continuously  coming,  so  that  to-day  our  Canadian  population 
is  about  one-fifth,  I  think,  of  the  whole. 

Q.  Now,  what  is  their  desire  or  inclination  to  take  part  in 
any  political  movements,  or  getting  naturalized,  or  any  thing 
like  that?    Do  they  take  part  in  public  affairs? 

A.  They  have  taken  part.  We  have  made  them  select- 
men;  we  have  put  them  on  the  school  committee,  and  we 
have  recognized  them  as  good  citizens  of  Marlborough. 

Q.  How  have  they  proved  as  citizens  of  Marlborough, 
what  is  their  record,  —  those  who  have  been  elected  to  public 
office,  whether  as  school  committee  men  or  as  selectmen,  — 
what  is  their  record  ? 

A.  Perfectly  good,  sir.  They  have  discharged  their  duties 
in  any  office  as  well  as  any  of  us,  sir.  I  believe  one  of  the 
gentlemen  who  was  elected  on  the  Board  of  Selectmen 
declined  to  serve,  or  he  could  have  been  elected  again. 

Q.    Now,  what  is  tlieir  condition  as  regards  education  ? 

A.  Well,  sir,  we  think  they  are  educated  too  much  in  our 
town,  for  the  benefit  of  the  town  financially,  —  they  have  to 
have  too  many  schoolhouses.  They  fill  up  our  schoolhouses, 
sir.  Our  low  schools  have  been  sixty  or  seventy  or  even  one 
hundred  in  number,  so  that  to-day  the  town  of  Marlborough 
is  expending  forty  thousand  dollars  for  schoolhouses  on 
account  of  this  population.  I  don't  know  as  they  increase 
faster  than  we  Yankees  do,  but  I  think  they  must. 

Q.  Whether  you  have  observed  the  French  people  outside 
of  Marlborough,  or  outside  of  the  State  of  Massachusetts? 

A.  My  experience  has  not  been  very  great  in  tha,t  direc- 
tion.   I  only  know  them  practically  in  Marlborough. 

Mr.  Wright.  The  French  Canadians  of  Marlborough,  if 
I  am  properly  informed,  are  employed  in  the  shoe  manu- 
factories ? 

Mr.  Aldrioh.    Wholly  in  the  shoe  manufactories. 

Q.    Are  you  connected  with  the  school  committee  ? 

A.  I  am  not  now  connected  with  it ;  I  have  been  con- 
nected with  it  for  a  long  time. 

Hon.  Charles  Q.  Tirrell  then  said:  Mr.  Chairman,  I 
have  the  honor  of  representing,  in  the  State  Senate,  the  dis- 


m 


THE  CANADIAN  FRENCH. 


86 


trict  of  which  Marlborough  forms  a  piut,  at  the  present  time ; 
and,  as  of  necessity  and  in  the  interest  of  my  constituents,  I 
have  taken  considerable  interest  in  this  question,  in  its  ex- 
amination and  its  presentation  ;  I  have  been  requested  by  the 
French  people,  although  I  do  not  desire  to  obtrude  myself,  to 
present  some  facts  at  this  hearing  in  reference  to  the  various 
points  which  are  to  be  considered. 

Now,  in  the  first  place,  I  desire  to  present,  Mr.  Chairman, 
some  testimony  in  regard  to  the  matter  of  schools,  upon  which 
you  asked  the  Hon.  Mr.  Aldrich  a  few  questions.  I  have  here 
a  few  letters  relative  to  the  public  schools,  and  I  think  that 
they  demonstrate,  if  the  testimony  of  the  school  committee 
of  the  town  of  Marlborough,  if  the  testimony  of  the  business 
men  of  the  town  of  Marlborough,  if  the  testimony  of  the 
school  teachers  of  the  town  of  Marlborough,  is  of  any  value 
or  force,  that  a  better  class  of  children  the  teachers  do  not 
desire,  nor  the  school  committee  themselves.^ 

Now,  in  regard  to  the  criminal  statistics  of  the  town  of 
Marlborough.  It  has  been  stated  by  Mr.  Aldrich  that  the 
French  population  of  the  town  of  Marlborough  is  about  two 
thousand,  or  one-fifth  of  our  entire  population.  Now,  let  us 
see  how  many  cases  have  been  brought  before  the  trial  justice 
of  that  town  for  the  violation  of  the  laws  of  the  Common- 
wealth. The  number  of  criminal  cases  brought  before  him 
from  Oct.  1,  1880,  to  Oct.  1,  1881,  was  383 ;  the  number  of 
French  nationality,  48, —  that  is,  one-fifth  of  the  population, 
and  only  one-tenth  of  the  criminality,  is  French. 

Now,  we  will  see  how  it  is  about  their  being  a  burden  upon 
the  community,  a  curse  to  any  town  or  village  where  they 
may  happen  to  be  located,  so  far  as  the  town  being  compelled 
to  assist  them  is  concerned.  From  the  report  of  the  overseers 
of  the  poor  it  appears  that  the  total  amount  paid  out  by  the 
town  for  the  assistance  of  the  poor,  —  as  I  understand  it,  in 
1880-81,  although  the  year  is  not  stated  here, — was  13,680.42 ; 
paid  to  people  of  French  nationality,  1496.81. 

The  real  estate  and  personal  property  of  the  town  of  Marl- 
borough is  about  as  follows :  total  $3,720,166,  and  the  French 
people  possess  1138,970.  Poll-tax  payers,  2,626;  French, 
863.  The  French  constitute  one-fifth  of  the  population ;  they 
receive  fourteen  per  cent  of  the  aid  which  is  given  to  the 
poor.    They  have  four  per  cent  of  the  wealth  of  the  town. 

^  The  letters  presented  by  Mr.  Tirrell  appear  at  the  close  of  his  statement. 


80  STATISTICS  OF  LABOR. 

We  have  a  perfect  mass  of  testimony  here  from  the  business 
men  of  the  town  of  Marlborough  that  we  propose  to  submit. 
It  would  take  up  too  much  valuable  time  to  read  this 
testimony  here  ;  but  the  committee  desire  me  to  leave  these 
letters  from  the  manufacturers  of  Marlborough,  from  the 
grocers,  from  the  tailors,  from  the  men  in  every  department 
of  the  industries  of  life,  which  all  go  to  show  by  an  over- 
whelming and  an  irrefutable  accumulation  of  evidence  that 
the  French  people  of  the  town  of  Marlborough  are  as  desir- 
able a  class  as  any  that  exists  within  its  borders. 

Mr.  Tirrell  filed  resolutions  passed  by  the  French  Cana- 
dians of  Marlborough,  June  13,  1881,  similar  to  those 
already  printed  from  Lowell  and  Hudson.  These  resolutions 
were  signed  by  Rev.  J.  Z.  Dumontier,  Dr.  J.  A.  Trembley, 
Onesime  Levasseur,  Jonas  Gregoire,  Charles  Favreau,  Louis 
B.  Talbot,  Leon  Burgess,  committee  on  resolutions. 

Mr.  Tirrell  also  submitted  letters  (referred  to  in  his 
remarks)  from  prominent  parties  in  Marlborough,  among 
others  the  following :  —  * 


Hon.  Cabboll  D.  Wright. 


Marlborough,  October,  1881. 


l!.fc 


Dear  Sir,  —  Having  read  what  you  have  wi'itten  in  the  Report  of  the 
Statistics  of  Labor  concerning  the  Canadian  French  in  the  State,  I  have 
been  requested  to  give  my  opinion  of  them  as  they  are  in  Marlborough. 
We  have  here  in  town  a  Canadian  French  population,  I  should  judge  to- 
day, of  a  thousand  or  more,  —  about  a  hundred  and  seventy-five  legal 
voters,  and  some  seventy- five  real  estate  owners.  Having  been  in  trade 
in  town  from  twenty  to  twenty-five  years,  and  having  had  a  large  share 
of  their  trade,  I  have  had  a  good  opportunity  to  judge  of  their  habits,  etc. 
I  cannot  say  what  class  of  Canadian  French  there  may  be  in  other  places ; 
but  your  article  does  not  do  them  justice  here. 

As  a  class,  in  Marlborough,  they  compare  favorably  with  any  other. 
Of  com-se  there  are  individual  exceptions.  During  our  civil  war  there 
might  not  have  been  many  in  town  at  that  time  naturalized;  but  a  num- 
ber enlisted  in  the  service,  though  v  e  had  a  much  smaller  French  popula- 
tion than  at  present.  But  since  that  time,  as  the  young  men  have  grown 
up,  they  stay  with  us,  buy  real  estate,  become  citizens,  and  are  indus- 
trious. Many  of  the  feiailies  that  came  here  twenty  years  ago  are  here 
to-day,  and  take  an  interest  in  our  affairs. 

Having  had  an  experience  with  the  children  as  a  member  of  the  school 
committee,  I  have  not  found  any  more  truants  from  that  nationality  than 
any  other.  I  can  recollect  many  of  the  brightest  aud  most  interesting  of 
the  schclars  were  French.  Many  of  the  French  children  work  in  our 
■hoe  factories;  but  in  my  experience  I  have  never  found  that  the  parents 


THE  CANADIAN   FRENCH. 


87 


wish  to  evade  the  laws  about  sending  their  children  to  school.  They 
have  seemed  to  me  to  desire  to  have  the  children  at  school,  as  a  rule. 
Poverty  in  some  cases  has  brought  them  so  that  the  help  of  their  children 
was  needed ;  yet,  when  the  heads  of  families  were  able  to  educate  their 
children,  as  a  rule,  they  wished  to  have  their  children  go  to  school. 

So  far  as  their  living  in  a  beggarly  way,  it  is  not  true  of  the  Canadians 
in  this  town.  As  a  class  they  live  well,  and,  as  the  facts  will  prove,  save, 
and  invest  in  real  estate.  The  French  like  amusement,  yet  I  do  not 
think  they  carry  it  to  excess  any  more  than  other  nationalities.  They 
seem  to  enjoy  life,  yet,  after  all,  as  it  is  here,  many  of  them  become  good 
citizens,  and  reflect  credit  on  themselves  and  the  town. 

Yours  very  truly, 

(Signed)  E.  L.   BIGELOW. 

Mablboroctoh,  Mass.,  Oct.  17,  1881. 
To  whom  it  may  concern: 

This  is  to  certify  that  in  my  acquaintance  with  the  French  Canadian 
people  of  this  town,  I  Bnd  them,  as  a  class,  honest,  industrious,  and 
taking  an  active  part  in  the  welfare  of  the  town.  Many  of  them  natural- 
ized, realizing  what  it  is  to  vote,  demand  their  rights  with  as  much 
promptness  as  any  other  class  of  people.  Also  many  of  them  own  real 
estate,  which  is  strong  evidence  that  they  have  come  amongst  us  to  r  i.nain 
and  make  homes  for  themselves  and  children. 

Respectfully  submitted. 

(Signed)  JAMES  T.  MURPHY, 

One  of  the  Selectmen  of  Marlborough. 

Marlborough,  Mass.,  Oct.  24,  1881. 

This  is  to  certify  that,  as  merchants  of  this  place  with  many  yeara' 
experience,  we  hold  the  trade  of  the  French  people  of  this  town  and  vicin- 
ity in  such  esteem  that  we  encourage  our  salesmen  to  learn  French  so  as 
to  increase  our  trade  with  the  older  folks  of  this  nationality  who  may 
not  speak  English  readily. 

The  French  residents  of  this  town  and  their  descendants  furnish  a 
large  percentage  of  our  customers.  They  are  good  judges  of  values,  ap- 
preciative of  new  styles  and  novelties,  and,  in  proportion  to  their  num- 
bers, are  good  buyers  of  all  classes  of  dry  goods.  To  lose  their  patron- 
age would  be  a  calamity. 

(Signed)  HOWE  &  STETSON. 


f 


Marlbobouoh,  Oct.  18,  1881. 

During  the  past  ten  years  we  have  counted  the  French  residents  of 
Marlborough  and  vicinity  as  amongst  our  best  customers,  and  find  them, 
as  a  role,  very  particular  as  to  style  and  quality,  and  willing  to  pay  good 
prices  if  they  find  what  they  want. 

(Signed)  C   W.  COSGROVE. 


■  TJ?^ 


88 


STATISTICS  OF  LABOR. 


Mablbo&ougb,  Mass.,  Oct.  21,  1881. 
To  vjhom  it  may  eoneern: 

This  is  to  certify  that  I,  Charles  Mowry,  police  officer  of  the  town  of 
Marlborough,  am  called  upon  to  perform  duty  in  the  section  of  the  town 
called  "  French  Hill "  —it  being  occupied  by  French  Canadians.  I  find 
them  a  quiet  and  a  law-abiding  class  of  people ;  disturbance  of  any  kind 
is  of  rare  occurrence,  and  those  caused  principally  by  strangers.  I  never 
was  interfered  with  in  the  performance  of  my  duty  by  them.  I  consider 
them  a  first-class  sort  of  people. 

Respectfully  submitted- 

(Signed)  CHAS.  MOWRY. 

MARLBOBonoB,  Oct.  12,  1881. 
To  all  whom  it  may  concern : 

This  is  to  certify  that  I  have  employed  Canadian  French  for  near  a 
quarter  of  a  century,  and  that  I  have  always  been  pleased  with  them.  I 
have  found  them  obedient,  quiet,  and,  in  fact,  they  compare  favorably 
with  any  I  have  ever  employed. 

(Signed)  JOHN  O'CONNELL, 

Manufacturer  of  Boots  and  Shoes. 

Marlborouoh,  Oct.  17,  1881. 

Having,  in  the  course  of  several  years'  service  on  the  school  commit- 
tee of  the  town  of  Marlborough,  become  familiar  with  the  pupils  attend- 
ing the  public  schools  in  that  town,  among  whom  every  year  may  be 
found  hundreds  of  children  of  French  Canadian  parentage,  I  can  truly 
assert  from  actual  observation  that  these  children  have  in  the  past  and  do 
now  compare  favorably  with  their  mates  of  other  parentage  in  intel- 
ligence, morality,  and  deportment. 

The  French  Canadian  children  are  very  apt,  and  manifest  in  a  high 
degi-ee  the  desirable  characteristics  of  industry  and  perseverance. 

In  my  official  capacity  I  have  frequently  come  in  contact  with  the  par- 
ents of  these  children,  and  they  have  at  all  times  shown  great  interest  in 
the  cause  of  education,  and  ever  have  been  anxious  that  the  young  of 
their  community  should  receive  the  benefits  to  be  derived  from  our  educa- 
tional institutions. 

(Signed)  JAMES  N.   McDONALIi, 

Of  the  School  Board  of  Marlborough. 


Marlborouor,  Mass.,  Oct.  25,  1881. 
To  whom  it  may  concern: 

This  is  to  certify  that,  as  a  member  of  the  school  committee  of  this 
to\m  for  two  years,  during  which  time  I  had  under  my  special  charge 
several  schools  of  the  primary  grade  largely  composed  of  French  Cana- 
dian children,  I  have  uniformly  found  this  class  bright,  docile,  and  teach- 
able in  every  respect.  Their  reputation  for  good  conduct  was  always 
excellent,  also,  among  our  teachers, 

(Signed)  R.  D.   PRATT. 


THE  CANADIAN  FRENCH. 


S9 


To  idhom  it  ma^/  concern : 

This  is  to  certify,  that  in  no  manner  have  the  pupils  of  French  Cana- 
dian birth  or  descent  caused  special  difRoulty  to  the  teachers  of  our  public 
schools.  Except  in  the  most  extreme  cases,  I  cjvn  safely  acknowledge 
them  to  be  keen,  quick-witted,  and  remarkably  obedient.  Teachers 
individually  amply  testify  that  their  relations  with  said  pupils  have  been 
especially  pleasant. 

In  our  section,  at  present,  the  majority  of  the  pupils  in  question  are 
specially  apt  and  agreeable  to  training.  I  can  recall  no  case,  during  ray 
experience,  in  which  even  one  of  said  pupils  has  committed  any  violent 
breach  of  good  manners. 

In  conclusion,  the  French  Canadian  pupils  in  our  department  are  not 
conspicuous  on  account  of  any  baneful  characteristics. 

Most  respectfully  submitted. 
(Signed)  ELLEN  A.  O'CONNELL, 

Washington  Street  Department  of  the  Public  Schools  of  Marlborough. 

I  can  cheerfully  indorse  every  word  of  the  above  statement,  so  far  aa 
my  departments  are  concerned. 

(Signed)  J.  V.  JACKMAN, 

_  Master  of  Pleasant  Street  Schools. 


high 


Maulboboogh,  Mass.,  Oct.  14,  1881. 
To  whom  it  may  concern : 

This  is  to  certify,  that  in  the  capacity  of  Treasurer  of  the  Marlborough 
Savings  Bank,  I  have  constant  dealings  with  the  French  citizens  of  this 
town  both  as  depositors  and  borrowers,  and  I  uniformly  find  them  an 
honest,  industrious,  and  money  saving  people. 

(Signed)  ED\\ARD  R.  ALLEY, 

Treasurer  of  the  Marlborough  Savings  Bank. 

Marlborough,  Mass.,  Oct.  24, 1881. 
Louis  B.  Talt.ot,  Esq. 

Dear  Sir,  —  In  reply  to  your  ir  i  uiry  as  to  my  knowledge  of  a  disposi- 
tion extant  among  our  Frencii  citizens  of  Marlborough  to  hoard  their 
earnings  under  any  probable  contingency  of  a  return  to  their  native 
country,  I  must  of  necessity  return  you  a  negative  answer.  My  business 
relations  with  our  French  population  cover  a  period  of  eleven  years  and 
upwards;  and  the  goods  in  which  I  deal  being  distinctive  from  what 
might  be  termed  the  necessaries  of  life,  enables  me  to  meet  your  inquiry 
more  broadly  perhaps  than  any  other  trader  here  could. 

From  positive  knowledge,  I  can  say,  that  in  proportion  to  their  means 
they  spend  their  money  as  freely  as  those  of  any  other  nationality,  in 
providing  the  essential  comforts  and  luxuries  for  their  homes.  I  find  also 
that  a  very  large  proportion  of  those  with  whom  I  came  in  contact  ten 
and  eleven  years  ago  are  still  living  here,  and  many  of  them  have  either 
erected  or  purchased  homes  that  they  own;  and,  so  far  as  outward  evi- 
dence exists,  they  are  as  permanently  located  as  any  other  class,  not  even 
excepting  the  Yankees.     And,  in  connection  with  the  defence  you  are  to 


4a 


STATISTICS  OF  LABOR. 


make,  it  may  not  be  out  of  place  to  add  a  further  word  as  tr  my  knowl- 
edge of  their  general  character.  My  business  connection^,  with  them 
have  been  quite  extended,  and  my  experience  justifies  the  statement  that, 
80  far  as  discharging  their  debt  obligations  are  concerned,  they  are  usu- 
ally actuated  by  a  high  sense  of  honor. 

I  have  found  them  considerate,  just,  disposed  to  deal  fairly,  and  sel- 
dom resorting  to  any  trickery  to  avoid  discharging  an  obligation.  In 
fact,  they  are  a  people  (and  I  think  all  our  traders  will  bear  me  out  in 
the  assertion)  with  whom  it  is  very  pleasant  to  meet  in  the  business 
affairs  of  every  day  life. 

Trusting  my  reply  may  meet  your  inquiry, 

I  remain  yours  truly, 
(Signed)  J.  W.  POPE. 


]  ■; 


Letters  of  similar  tenor  were  also  submitted,  signed  by  Miss 
Evsk  S.  C.  Wheelock,  and  Miss  Hattie  E.  Brigham,  school 
teachers,  and  Messrs.  Samuel  Boyd,  Sidney  G.  Fay,  John  L. 
Stone,  William  Barnes,  John  Rock,  Brigham  &  Eager,  and 
H.  G.  Fay,  all  of  Marlborough. 

Mr.  TiRRELL  (in  closing).  I  think  that  is  all  that  I  wish  to 
present ;  but  there  are  other  citizens  of  Marlborough,  French 
people  and  others,  who,  perhaps,  would  like  to  say  a  word. 
I  would  call  upon  Mr.  Timothy  A.  Coolidge. 

Mr.  TiRRELL.     Where  do  you  reside? 

Mr.  CooLrooE.     Marlborough. 

Q.     How  long  have  you  lived  there  ? 

A.    Twenty-two  years. 

Q.    What  is  your  business  there  ? 

A.    Manufacturer  of  shoes. 

Q.    How  extensively  are  you  engaged  in  that  manufacture  ? 

A.  I  employ  about  three  hundred  persons,  making  about 
twenty-five  hundred  or  three  thousand  pairs  a  day. 

Q.  Have  you  carried  on  such  a  business  as  that  for  a 
number  of  years  in  the  town  of  Marlborough  ? 

A.     Perhaps  ten  years. 

Q.  During  this  period,  whether  or  not  you  have  employed 
a  large  number  of  French  Canadian  people  in  that  town  ? 

A.  I  think  I  have  employed  as  large  a  share  of  French 
people  as  any  of  the  factories,  perhaps  more  so,  or  as  much 
so,  at  any  rate.  I  have  a  large  share  of  French  people,  be- 
ing in  that  part  of  the  town  where  the  French  people  mostly 
reside. 

Q.  How  many  should  you  say  you  had  in  your  employ  at 
thel'present  time  ? 


THE  CANADIAN  FRENCH. 


41 


A.     I  should  say  there  were  one  hundred. 

Q.  Now,  Mr.  Coolidge,  what  have  you  to  say  relative  ^o 
their  habits  of  industry  ? 

A.  Well.  I  have  always  considered  them  as  having  good 
habits  of  industry,  as  good  as  any  class  I  have  had  in  my 
employ;  and,  out  of  the  factory,  I  don't  see  but  they  are  the 
same. 

Q.     How  as  to  their  intelligence,  and  aptness  for  work  ? 

A.  That  is  very  good.  Their  mechanical  skill  is  good ; 
they  are  quick  to  see  into  any  thing,  and  to  take  hold  of  any 
thing;  they  are  quick,  and  they  are  always  willing  to  do 
whatever  is  required. 

Q.  How  do  the  French  people  of  Marlborough  stand  in 
the  community  there,  as  citizens  ? 

A.  I  think  they  are  recognized  the  same  as  any  other 
class  of  citizens. 

Q.  Whether  or  not  they  take  an  interest  in  public  affairs 
in  the  town  of  Marlborough  ? 

A.  They  do,  and  I  think  they  generally  show  more  in- 
terest than  do  a  great  many  others. 

Q.  How  about  their  habits  through  the  town  at  large,  — 
whether  they  are  public  violators  of  law,  or  otherwise,  —  I 
mean,  take  them  as  a  class  generally  in  the  community  ? 

A.  Well,  take  them  as  a  class,  I  consider  them  on  an 
average  with  the  other  people.  I  live  right  among  them.  I 
live  in  a  part  of  the  town  that  most  of  the  French  live  in  ; 
there  are  a  number  of  the  families  on  the  street,  and  they  are 
just  as  good  neighbors  as  any  neighbors  I  could  have.  I 
would  not  wish  to  change  for  any  neighbors  of  Yankee 
people  or  Irish.  They  are  good  neighbors.  Their  children 
attend  school ;  they  dress  well ;  they  are  economical,  and 
attend  church  regularly  as  any  other  class  of  people,  and  they 
are  just  as  quiet  on  Sundays.  I  have  a  chance  to  see  that, 
because  I  live  right  amongst  them. 

Q.  Any  thing  further,  Mr.  Coolidge,  that  you  desire  to 
say? 

A.  I  do  not  know  that  there  is  any  thing  particular.  There 
has  been  something  said  here  in  regard  to  strikes  amongst  the 
French  people.  Now,  of  course,  in  my  own  factory,  I  have 
had  a  great  number  of  strikes,  but  I  don't  think,  —  and  I 
have  noticed  it  during  the  last  three  or  four  years  when  I 

6 


4i2 


STATISTICS   OF  LABOR. 


• 


have  employed  more  French,  —  I  don't  think  I  have  hftd  the 
strikes  in  my  factory  that  there  have  been  in  others.  Of 
course,  when  there  is  a  strike  in  the  factory,  the  French  must 
fall  in,  necessarily,  —  they  could  not  do  any  other  way  and 
have  peace,  —  but  I  am  satisfied  that  I  have  not  had  the 
strikes  in  my  factory  that  there  have  been  in  other  factories 
the  last  three  years ;  and  I  think  I  have  employed  a  larger 
portion  of  French  than  most  other  factories:  there  is  one 
exception,  perhaps. 

Mr.  Dubuque.     Mr.  Coolidge,  you  were  a  representative 
for  your  district,  I  believe,  last  year  ? 

Mr.  Coolidge.    Yes,  sir,  last  year. 

Mr.  J.  H.  GuiLLET,  of  Lowell,  then  said :  Mr.  Chairman, 
I  have  a  few  statistics  whica  I  would  like  to  offer.     First,  I 
will  take  the  population  of  Lowell.     It  is  60,000 ;  French 
Canadians,  11,000,  or  18.3-|-  per  cent  of  total  population 
amount  of  real  estate  owned  by  French  Canadians,  $275,000 
French  Canadians  paying  taxes  on  personal  property,  83 
amount  of  personal  property  owned  by  French  Canadians, 
$96,000,  which  makes  the  total  valuation  of  property  owned 
by  French  Canadians  $371,000.     The  assessors  told  me  that 
the  property  was  taxed  but  two-thirds  of  the  actual  value 
there  in  Lowell  this  year,  and  that  is  the  amount  which  they 
are  taxed  on. 

Now  as  to  the  attendance  of  children  at  school :  — 


Total  number  of  children  in  public  schools 
Total  number  in  parochial  schools  . 


6,193 
1,100 


That  is  to  say,  the  total  number  of  children  at  school  is  7,293, 
or  12.1+  per  cent  of  the  total  population.  Of  French 
Canadian  children  there  are  :  — 


Total  number  in  public  schools 
Total  number  in  parochial  schools 


925 
253 


Or  a  total  of  1,178  now  in  school.  We  petitioned  the  city  of 
Lowell,  two  years  ago,  to  provide  more  schoolrooms  for  us. 
They  have  given  us  two  rooms  where  we  need  ten.  The 
school  committee  has  been  fighting  all  the  time  for  two  years 
to  have  rooms  provided.  I  take  the  statement  of  Mr.  Smith, 
of  the  school  committee,  that  in  one  district  we  have  183 
children  who  cannot  attend  school  for  want  of  room.  I  am 
informed  chat  in  other  parts  of  the  city  there  are  many  who 


THE  CANADIAN  FRENCH. 


48 


cannot  go  to  school  for  the  same  reason.  They  use  svard 
rooms  and  every  place  possible  for  schoolrooms.  Now,  if  we 
add  this  total  of  183  French  Canadian  children  who  are  pre- 
vented from  attendance  for  lack  of  room  to  the  number 
previously  obtained,  we  find  the  whole  number  of  Canadian 
school  children  to  be  1,361,  or  12.3-|-  per  cent  of  the  total 
French  Canadian  population. 

Consider  in  this  connection  that  a  large  part  of  the  French 
population  is  composed  of  grown-up  families  recently  arrived 
in  Lowell,  together  with  many  young  men  and  women  who 
have  come  to  make  their  home  here,  and  who,  being  un- 
married, consequently  have  no  children  to  attend  school. 

There  are  in  Lowell  232  French  Canadians  who  have 
become  naturalized  American  citizens,  and,  besides  these, 
twenty-seven  who  have  declared  their  intention  to  become 
naturalized.  Please  remember  that  the  laws  of  this  country 
regarding  naturalization  are  very  strict,  and  that  five  years 
ago  there  were  not  many  French  Canadian  young  men  here 
who  were  under  eighteen  years  of  age. 

We  have  in  our  city  seven  French  Canadians  in  ofiicial 
positions,  including  two  public  .  school  teachers,  and  one 
member  of  the  common  council.  We  have  a  church  with 
a  seating  capacity  of  2,100,  and  also  two  French  Canadian 
benevolent  societies,  two  literary  societies,  and  two  dramatic 
societies.  These  societies  give  conferences  on  different  topics 
every  other  week,  and  dramatic  representations  every  month. 
We  have  a  French  Canadian  brass  band,  and  a  French 
Canadian  newspaper.^ 

There  are  in  Lowell  134  French  Canadians  engaged  in 
businp'.s  on  their  own  account  in  the  various  branches  of 
trade;  there  are  ten  physicians  and  seventy-one  clerks. 
There  is  also  a  branch  of  the  Northwestern  Mutual  Life 
Insurance  Company  of  Milwaukee,  Wis.,  in  which  French 
Canadians  of  Lowell  have  invested  large  sums  of  money. 

In  regard  to  the  education  of  our  people,  the  facts  that  they 
have  reading-rooms,  conferences,  and  dramatic  representa- 
tions so  often,  as  I  have  stated;  that  we  support  a  newspaper; 
and  that  we  have  evening  classes  for  those  who  desire  to 
attend,  supported  by  the  before  mentioned  associations, — are 
ample  proofs  that  we  may  be  favorably  compared  with  any 
other  nationality  so  far  as  educational  taste  is  concerned. 
I  Now  published  daily,  Dec.  1, 1881. 


44 


STATISTICS  OF  LABOR. 


As  to  our  habits,  I  offer  as  facts:  1st,  on  every  Sunday  our 
church,  which  has  a  seating  capacity  of  2,100,  as  I  have 
stated,  is  filled  three  times ;  2d,  our  reading-roora,  connected 
with  one  of  the  above  named  associations,  is  well  attended 
every  night;  3d,  the  conferences  given  under  the  auspices  of 
our  societies  every  two  weeks  are  also  very  well  attended, 
and  so  are  our  dramatic  representations  and  evening  schools ; 
4th,  that  with  a  population  of  11,000  French  Canadians,  we 
have  only  one  saloon,  owned  by  one  of  our  people,  where  in- 
toxicating liquor  is  sold,  and  he  does  not  keep  it  himself;  and 
5th,  that  the  clerk  of  the  Lowell  police  court  has  stated  to 
me  that  if  the  whole  population  of  the  city  were  French  and 
American  there  would  not  be  business  enough  to  support  the 
court. 

In  regard  to  the  mill  operatives  I  would  state  that  on  the 
occasion  of  the  24th  of  June  last,  when  I  interviev-ed  agents 
of  our  cotton  manufacturers  to  obtain  permission  to  let  the 
French  Canadian  help  out  on  that  day,  Mr.  Ludlam  of  the 
Merrimack  Manufacturing  Company  told  me  that  he  would 
do  it  with  pleasure,  as  he  considered  the  French  his  best  help. 
Mr.  Cumnock  spoke  in  very  severe  terms  of  the  Twelfth 
Annual  Report,  and  said  the  French  were  his  best  help.  Mr. 
Shaw  of  the  Tremont  and  Suffolk  Mills,  and  Mr.  Moulton  of 
the  Hamilton  Manufacturing  Company,  both  said  that  the 
French  compared  very  favorably  with  any  other  nationality 
in  their  respective  mills. 

I  have  letters  here  from  overseers.  We  have  about  half  a 
dozen  French  overseers  in  Lowell,  but  I  will  read  no  letters 
trom  them,  because  they  are  interested. 

Mr.  Guillet  then  read  the  following  letters :  — 

Lowell,  Oct.  24,  1881. 
In  the  capacity  of  o.erseer  for  the  Lawrence  Manufacturing  Company 
I  employ  about  seventy-five  French  Canadian  people,  mostly  males.  I 
find  them,  as  a  rule,  punctual  and  steady  at  their  work,  and  not  given  to 
drunkenness.  I  have  not  found  them  desirous  of  working  overtime, 
though  frequent  opportunity  has  been  given  them  to  do  so. 

(Signed)  S.  R.  Eitchek. 


THE  CANADIAN   FRENCH. 


46 


OFrioB  or  THB  Trehomt  and  Suffolk  Mills, 
Lowell,  Mass.,  Oct.  24,  1881. 

To  whom  it  may  concern,  and  regarding  the  French  Canadian  operatives  fm- 
ployed  in  these  mills : 

It  is  my  opinion,  that  as  regards  thrift,  sobriety,  and  general  good 
behavior  and  application  to  their  labors,  they  compare,  as  a  class,  favor- 
ably with  either  of  the  other  classes  —  viz.,  American  and  Irish  —  em- 
ployed on  this  corporation. 

(Signed)  J.    S.   SHAW,  Agent. 

Per  Chadwick. 

Lowell,  Mass.,  Oct.  24,  1881. 

We,  undersigned,  furnishing  food  and  provisions  to  over  five  hundred 
French  families  in  this  city,  do  certify  that  the  French  Canadians  as  a 
class  do  like  and  use  the  best  kind  of  meats  and  provisions,  and  don't 
live  as  paupers. 

(Signed)  GAUDETTE  BROS. 


Mr.  GuiLLET  (continuing).  In  the  Merrimack  Manufac- 
turing Company  they  have  an  establishment  called  f;i',ncy 
work,  where  they  employ  about  175  help ;  and  I  understand 
160  are  French,  and  they  are  putting  in  looms,  and  I  am 
informed  that  by  and  by  the  whole  room  will  be  French. 
They  like  their  help  and  their  work  on  this  particular  kind  of 
work.  The  statistics  I  have  given  are  for  the  most  part  taken 
by  myself  from  the  assessors'  books;  and  those  about  the 
schools  were  given  by  the  superintendent  of  schools.  He  is 
a  little  opposed  to  the  French  -,  but  still  he  gave  me  very 
kindly  these  statistics,  and  some  of  the  school  committee 
were  present,  and  they  helped  me  considerably.  These  are 
correct;  and  I  made  them  with  the  expectation  that  the 
books  would  be  looked  over  by  somebody  else. 

Mr.  Dubuque.  You  have  been  elected  president  of  the 
convention  held  in  Fall  River  the  first  part  of  October  ? 

Mr.  GuiLLET.    I  have. 

Q.  This  convention  was  composed  of  delegates  from  Rhode 
Island  and  Massachusetts  ? 

A.    Yes,  sir. 

Q.  Now,  how  long  have  you  taken  part  in  these  annual 
conventions  ? 

A.    Well,  I  have  about  four  years. 

Q.  Now,  whether  the  question  of  naturalization  has  been 
discussed  before  these  conventions  ? 


liT' 


M 


46 


STATISTICS   OP  LABOR. 


i  1 


A.     Yes,  sir ;  it  has  many  and  many  times. 

Q.  Wliat  has  been  the  universal  sentiment  in  the  conven- 
tions with  regard  to  this  question  of  naturalization  and 
repatriation  ? 

A.  Every  time  there  were  resolutions  passed  favoring  the 
naturalization  of  the  people,  and  requesting  them  to  use  all 
efforts,  and  to  do  eveiy  thing  possible  to  get  naturalized. 
About  repatriation,  —  the  last  convention  decided  not  to  say 
a  word  about  it,  to  let  those  who  desired  to  be  repatriated  do 
it.  We  found  out  that  the  people  were  having  good  homes 
here ;  and  those  who  had  homes  here  had  better  stay  here  for 
the  present  anyway. 

Q.  Now,  whether  you  have  taken  part  in  any  movement 
in  Lowell  or  anywhere  to  secure  the  naturalization  of  our 
people  ? 

A.  Yes,  sir;  I  have  every  year.  Every  year  we  have 
friends  in  Lowell  and  in  Fall  River,  when  I  lived  there,  who 
have  gotten  up  clubs,  and  done  all  we  could  to  get  the  people 
naturalized ;  and  they  have  responded  pretty  well.  Just  as 
soon  as  they  understand  the  language,  just  as  soon  as  they 
are  of  age  to  be  naturalized,  they  are  ready  to  answer,  and 
they  get  naturalized. 

Q.     How  many  years  have  you  been  in  the  States  ? 

A.    I  have  been  about  ten  years  in  the  United  States. 

Q.  Now,  from  your  observation,  while  you  have  lived  here 
in  the  United  States,  are  there  not  a  great  many  people  who 
come  here  at  the  age  of  between  forty  and  fifty  who  do  not 
learn  the  English  language  ? 

A.  Yes,  sir ;  there  are  a  great  many.  Of  course  there  are 
a  good  many  of  that  age  who  come  here,  who  have  families, 
and  we  don't  expect  to  have  those  old  gentlemen  natural- 
ized; they  are  too  old,  —  they  cannot  learn  the  language. 
It  is  very  exceptional  to  find  an  old  man  to  talk  English. 
He  has  come  here  too  old ;  and  unless  he  buys  a  piece  of 
land  or  property  he  does  not  get  naturalized  :  he  don't  under- 
stand the  ways,  he  don't  understand  the  laws,  of  the  people 
among  whom  he  lives. 

Q.  Now,  whether  or  not,  according  to  your  experience, 
the  children  of  those  who  have  come  here  old,  and  cannot 
talk  English,  as  soob  as  they  get  to  understand  the  language 
and  the  customs,  and  become  of  age,  get  naturalized  ? 


THE  CANADIAN  FRENCH. 


47 


A.  Yes,  sir  ;  they  do,  especially  within  two  or  three  years : 
we  have  had  a  great  many  applications  from  people  just  as 
soon  as  they  come  of  age,  and  before  they  come  to  age,  in- 
quiring when  they  would  be  able  to  get  naturalized,  and  they 
get  naturalized  just  as  soon  as  they  can. 

Mr.  Wright.  You  are  acquainted  with  the  locality  called 
"  Little  Canada  "  in  Lowell  ? 

Mr.  GuiLLET.     Yes,  sir. 

Q.    What  is  the  sanitary  condition  of  that  district  ? 

A.  Well,  according  to  the  report  made  last  year,  and  pub- 
lished this  year,  it  is  not  very  good ;  but  last  year  those 
buildings  which  were  referred  to  in  the  report  published  yes- 
terday were  not  finished. 

Q.     What  report  do  you  refer  to  ? 

A.  To  the  report  of  the  sanitary  commission  of  Massa- 
chusetts, published  in  the  papers  yesterday,  and  it  created 
quite  a  breeze  in  Lowell,  —  it  censured  the  whole  school- 
house  system  and  Little  Canada.  About  half  a  dozen  of  the 
houses  there  are  owned  by  French  people ,  but  the  most  of 
them  are  owned  by  American  speculators  who  lease  the  land, 
and  build  up  tenement  houses.  The  most  of  them  are  used 
by  the  French  because  they  work  more  in  the  Lawrence  and 
Tremont  and  Suffolk  Mills. 

Mr.  Wright.  Do  you  think  the  owners,  or  the  tenants, 
are  responsible  for  the  bad  sanitary  condition  ? 

A.    The  owners,  undoubtedly. 

Q.     Who  do  you  say  own  the  buildings  ? 

A.  I  don't  know  if  I  remember  all  the  names ;  I  could 
give  half  a  dozen  names,  —  Mr.  Farrington,  Mr.  Thompson, 
Mr.  Lombard,  George  W.  Harris,  —  Harris  owns  two-thirds 
of  the  place,  and  four-fifths  are  owned  by  Americans.  The 
land  used  to  be  old  low  land,  the  Lowell  landing  they  called 
it  formerly.  It  is  filled  in  with  what  they  got  from  excava- 
tions when  they  built  the  mills,  and  with  dirt  from  the 
street.  It  was  filled  with  dirt  of  the  streets  for  several  years, 
but  this  has  been  stopped.  I  have  not  noticed  for  three  or 
four  years  any  filling  with  refuse  matter. 

Mr.  Dubuque.  I  wish  to  put  in  evidence  the  report  of 
the  superintendent  of  schools  of  Fall  River  for  1881,  and  I 
have  marked  the  places  and  the  pages  to  which  I  want  to  call 
the  attention  of  the  Bureau. 


if 


f 


41  STATISriCS   OF  LABOR. 

[The  extracts  from  the  report  are  as  follows  :  — 

"  The  lawa  relating  to  the  achooliiig  of  children  wlio  are  employed  iu 
the  mills  part  of  each  year  are  well  observed.  It  is  a  rare  occurrence  to 
find  in  the  manufacturing  eHtablishmenta  of  this  city  a  child  employed 
between  ten  and  fourteen  ycarN  of  age  who  has  not  attended  school 
twenty  weeks  during  the  year  next  preceding  the  time  of  his  employ- 
ment, I  doubt  if  any  city  in  the  Commonwealth  can  show  as  good  a 
record  as  Fall  lliver,  notwithstanding  the  opportunities  for  the  employ- 
ment of  children  in  this  city  between  ten  and  fourteen  are  more  numerous 
than  in  any  other. 

••  The  requirement  prohibiting  the  employment  of  children  of  the 
above  ages  who  are  unable  to  read  and  write,  is  not,  in  my  opiuion,  so 
generally  obeyed.  What  is  to  be  understood  by  the  ability  or  the  inabil- 
ity of  a  child  to  read  and  write,  is  not  easily  determined.  The  vngueuess 
of  the  law  leads,  perhaps,  to  its  violation.  Does  the  requirement  mean 
that  the  child  shall  be  able  to  read  and  write  English  before  he  can  be 
lawfully  employed?  Or,  if  unable  to  perform  these  acts  in  English,  and 
can  read  and  write  in  French,  German,  Spanish,  or  in  any  other  language, 
will  that  qualification  answer  the  requirements  of  the  law  ?  Does  it 
admit  of  as  liberal  an  interpretation  respecting  the  qualifications  of  the 
children  to  perform  the  acts  of  reading  and  of  writing  as  is  practised  '  •' 
municipal  authorities  in  putting  voters'  names  on  their  voting  lists  ? 
so,  the  law  can  hardly  be  violated.  The  spirit  of  the  law  is  good,  b 
seems  to  me  that  it  is  pr  .otically  a  dead  letter  because  of  its  vagueness." 


I   I 


The  teachers  of  the  Armory  Hall  School  make  honorable 
mention  of  fourteen  pupils,  of  whom  four  are  French  Cana- 
dians.] 

Mr.  Dubuque  also  subraitte- <  the  report  of  the  City  Marshal 
of  Fall  River  for  the  year  ending  Feb.  28, 1881,  from  which  it 
appears  that  but  one  hundred  and  twenty  Canadians  (either 
French  or  born  in  Canada)  were  arrested  during  the  year  out 
of  a  total  of  1,817  arrests. 

Mr.  J.  D.  MoNTMAEQUET,  of  Lewistou,  Me.,  then  appeared 
in  behalf  of  the  French. 

Q.  (By  Mr.  Dubuque.)  Are  you  the  editor  of  a  French 
paper  published  at  Lewiston  ? 

A.    Yes,  sir,  —  "  Le  Messager." 

Q.  Whether  or  not  the  French  in  the  State  of  Maine  have 
had  a  national  convention  ? 

A.    Yes,  sir. 

Q.  And  that  has  been  composed  of  delegates  from  what 
places  ? 


THK   CANADIAN    FIIKNCH. 


49 


A.  From  all  the  dillV'itMit  loralities  of  the  State  of  Maine, 
where  the  French  rrside. 

Q.     When  did  thiit  uonvcuition  meet? 

.4.     On  the  2lst,  -22(1,  and  2;{d  of  June  hist. 

V.  Vou  lire  (»nt'  of  the  promoters,  I  believe,  of  the  move- 
ment ? 

A.     Ves,  sir. 

Q.     Now,  will  you  pleuse  proceed  with  your  report? 

Mr.  MoNTMAUQUET.  I  iiui  ^liiiig  to  give  first,  gentlemen, 
the  most  eUxjuent  part  of  my  statement;  that  is,  the  figures. 
I  do  not  intend  to  give  you  a  report  of  all  the  localities  of 
Maine.  It  would  simply  be  a  repetition  of  the  one  submit- 
ted. I  will  give,  for  instance,  Lcwiston.  What  is  there,  is 
found  in  every  city,  town,  and  village  of  Maine,  in  proportion 
to  their  population.  The  total  [lopulation  of  this  city  is  from 
nineteen  thousand  to  twenty  thousand.  The  French  Cana- 
dians number  about  live  thousand,  one  hundred  and  fifty  of 
whom  are  voters.  Number  who  have  taken  their  first  papers, 
fifty. 

We  have  one  French  Catholic  church,  which  cost,  altars, 
organ,  and  ornaments  included,  alioiit  one  hundred  thousand 
dollars.  This  church  is  in  charge  of  five  Dominican  Fathers. 
We  have  a  convent,  but  it  has  [irovcd  insullicicnt:  and  a  largo 
lot  of  land  has  been  recently  i)urchascd  on  wiiich  to  erect  a 
larger  building  for  school  purposes.  Besides  this  convent 
we  have  a  day  school  for  children,  and  two  evening  schools 
for  adults.  The  scholars  who  attend  the  convent  number 
about  three  hundred.  1  may  not  be  exact  in  my  figures,  but 
they  are  very  nearly  correct,  and  give  an  exact  idea  of  what 
is  in  Lewiston  ;  and  what  is  in  Lewiston  gives  an  exact  idea 
of  what  is  in  all  Maine. 

Q.     (By  Mr.   Dubuqui*:. )     Whether  or  not,  Mr.  Mo'- 
marqnet,  you  have  travelled  through  Maine,  in  the  variou.N 
centres  or  places  where  the  French  are  settled? 

A.     I  have,  sir. 

Q.     Whether  or  not  you  have  been  in  other  States? 

A.  Yes,  sir:  all  through  the  New  England  States,  and 
New  York. 

4>.  You  have  been  occupied  as  editor  of  this  paper  for 
how  long? 

A.     A  little  over  a  year  and  a  half. 

7 


60 


STATISTICS  OF  LABOR. 


<?. 

States 
A. 

(>. 
A. 


Q.  Before  that  time  you  were  employed  as  travelling 
agent  for  the  "  Travailleur,"  of  Mr.  Gagnon  ? 

A.     Yes,  sir,  for  about  two  years. 

And  as  such  travelling  agent  you  have  visited  the 
Maine,  New  Hampshire,  Vermont,  and  New  York  ? 
Yes,  sir. 

you  have  lived  in  New  York  ? 

I  lived  in  New  York  about  twenty  years;  about  eight 
years  in  the  city,  and  ten  or  twelve  in  other  parts  of  the 
State. 

Q.  I  believe  you  published  some  reports  from  the  various 
centres  you  visited  while  you  were  travelling  agent  for  Mr. 
Gagnon's  paper  ? 

A,     I  have  made  quite  a  work  of  them. 

Q.  You  have  collected  statistics,  I  believe,  of  the  various 
localities  ? 

A.     Yes,  sir,  all  of  them. 

Q.    Now  proceed,  if  you  please,  with  your  report. 

A.  We  have  two  benevolent  societies  in  Lewiston ; 
each  of  these  have  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  members. 
And  we  have  also  what  we  call  a  National  Club ;  this  club 
is  coi"posed  of  the  whole  French  population  of  the  city. 

Q.     What  is  its  object  ? 

A.  Its  object  is  the  discussion  of  the  question  of  general 
politics,  exclusive  of  Dariy  affiliations,  in  the  interest  of  the 
French  population  especiaUy.  The  main  question  is  the 
naturalization  of  the  Frenc^i  Canadians.  That  was  the  idea 
of  the  club  when  we  established  it. 

Q.    In  that  club  I  suppose  you  speak  the  Frerch  language? 

A.     Yes,  sir,  always. 

Q.    As  in  all  the  French  societies  ? 

A.     Yes,  sir. 

Q.  These  benevolent  societies  you  have  spoken  of  are 
mutual  relief  societies  ? 

A.     Yes,  sir. 

Q.     For  the  relief  of  sick  members  ? 

A.  Yes,  sir.  We  have  a  brass  band,  and  two  dramatic 
clubs.  We  have  one  French  paper,  two  doctors,  one  lawyer, 
two  druggists,  two  dry  goods  merchants,  two  boot  and  shoe 
merchants,  one  stationer,  nine  grocers,  one  furniture  dealer, 
three  printers,  twelve  carpenters,  twelve  shoemakers,  seven 


THE   CANADIAN  FRENCH. 


51 


blacksmiths,  two  masons,  eight  painters,  and  fifty,  or  about 
that  number,  French  Canadian  clerks  in  American  stores. 
We  have  twenty-five  real  estate  owners,  and  a  larger  num- 
ber who  have  built  houses  on  leased  land.  We  have  two 
representatives  in  the  city  council,  and  one  French  policeman. 
Now,  if  we  call  criminals  those  who  get  locked  up  for  one 
night,  we  have  had  about  ten  during  the  last  year.  I  can't 
tell  3'ou  the  whole  number  of  arrests  made  in  the  city  ('.uring 
the  year,  but  out  of  the  whole  number  only  ten  were  French 
Canadians.  But  if  you  call  criminals  only  those  who  have 
received  sentence  we  haven't  a  single  one  in  the  whole 
French  Canadian  population  of  the  city.  I  remember  at  the 
last  criminal  court  the  judge  made  the  remark :  not  even  a 
single  Frenchman  was  there  as  a  witness. 

And  now,  gentlemen,  I  wish  to  make  this  statement,  that 
what  we  have  done  for  our  church,  costing  about  one  hundred 
thousand  dollars,  —  eighty  thousand  dollars  of  which  has  been 
paid,  —  for  the  organizadou  of  these  societies  and  schools,  we 
have  done  in  the  space  of  about  ten  years.  Before  that  time 
there  were  but  very  few  French  Canadians  in  Lewiston,  and 
no  organization  whatever. 

Now,  gentlemen,  I  have  the  reports  here  of  several  other 
places,  but  I  think  it  unnecessary  to  give  them :  it  would  be 
occupying  valuable  time  for  nothing. 

Mr.  Dubuque.     I  think  you  had  better  give  them. 

Mr.  Wright.  I  think  so ;  make  your  t.iatement  as  full  as 
your  facts  will  allow. 

Mr.  MoNTMARQUET  (resuming).  Let  us  take  Biddeford, 
then.  The  total  population  of  Biddeford  ih  12,200.  The 
French  Canadians  number  6,500  ;  voters,  475.  There  is  one 
splendid  Catholic  church  there,  and  two  French  Catholic 
priests.  There  are  four  schools,  a  nationtil  society,  the 
French  Canadian  Institute,  a  society  for  young  men,  and  a 
mutual  benefit  society.  There  are  thirty-five  merchants,  two 
lawyers,  and  two  holding  public  office.  There  are  French 
Canadian  clerks  in  every  store  there,  and  there  are  about  fif- 
teen in  different  kinds  of  busi  less  not  mentioned  here.  Now, 
to  give  you  an  idea  of  what  their  benevolent  societies  are, 
they  give  us  a  statement  of  their  finances.  The  Society  of 
St.  John  the  Baptist  since  its  organization  has  received 
$6,443.96;  the  expenses  have  been  $2,503.38.     They  have 


w 


W 


62 


STATISTICS   OF  LABOR. 


donated  to  the  church,  $300;  they  have  given  as  chanties 
for  different  objects,  f  250 ;  the  current  expenses  have  been 
$2,590.58;  they  have  .n  hank  1800,  and  $1,200  in  real  estate, 
making  $2,000  in  the  Society  fund.  That  gives  an  idea  of 
the  state  of  our  societies  in  Maine.  This  is  one  among  many 
of  them. 

Here  is  Waterville.  The  population  is  4,859;  French 
Canadians,  1,635,  with  100  voters.  They  have  one  Catholic 
church,  one  benevolent  society,  four  grocers,  three  wheel- 
wrights, six  painters,  four  bhieksmiths,  one  doctor,  one  barber, 
three  shoemakers,  three  engineers,  and  eighteen  teamsters. 
The  ten-hour  system  is  in  force  there. 

Now,  there  is  another  part  of  Maine,  Madawaska,  the  most 
isolated  part  of  the  State.  It  is  not  exactly  in  case  here,  but 
allow  me  to  just  refer  to  it,  please.  It  is  a  part  of  Maine  once 
belonging  to  Canada,  but  to  the  United  States  since  1842. 
All  I  have  to  say  about  that  district  is  that  the  French  people 
there  are  all  naturalized,  and  all  real  estate  owners.  They 
have  their  churches  and  schools  mostly  taught  by  French 
Canadians. 

Now,  as  I  stated  before,  I  have  visited  all  the  New  England 
States,  and  have  made  a  regular  census  of  this  part  of  the 
countrj'^,  and  also  of  New  York.  I  published  tlie  result  of 
my  labors  in  Mr.  Gagnon's  paper.  I  can  say  that  I  found 
French  Canadians  everywhere  in  all  of  the  liberal  professions 
and  in  all  branches  of  business.  I  will  add  that  they  desire 
to  educate  their  children,  and,  besides  helping  to  support  the 
general  institutions  of  learning,  have  their  own  schools  taught 
by  their  own  teachers.  And  I  have  found  in  every  family, 
with  a  very  few  exceptions,  from  one  to  five  who  could  read 
and  write  either  French  or  English.  And,  in  regard  to  the 
morals  and  religion  of  the  people,  I  say,  and  I  am  proud 
to  declare  it,  that  the  French  Canadian  people  are  superior 
to  any  other  nationality  in  the  United  States.  As  proof  of 
this  I  offer  the  Canadians  of  New  England.  If  you  question 
the  statement,  go  and  study  the  proof  which  lies  in  every 
French  Canadian  family  in  New  England.  As  to  the  system 
of  ten  hours'  work  per  day,  I  can  only  repeat  what  has  been 
said  by  the  gentlemen  preceding  me,  viz.,  that  the  law  is 
not  in  force  in  every  State.  The  French  Canadians  desire 
this  system,  but  will  not  endeavor  to  obtain  it  by  unlawful 


' 


m 


THE   CANADIAN   FRENCH. 


68 


means,  such  as  strikes,  riots,  etc.  I  have  talked  with  this 
people  in  their  own  houses,  and  I  know  them;  I  have  studied 
them:  I  know  it  is  because  they  could  not  obtain  the  sys- 
tem without  committing  acts  condemned  by  law.  That  is, 
they  could  not  obtain  it  except  through  strikes  and  all  the 
disorders  inseparable  from  this  evil,  and  this  is  forbidden  by 
order  of  the  priests,  and  we  generally  obey  our  priests  because 
we  know  that  they  always  guide  us  in  the  right  path.  And 
on  that  account  we  have  not  that  system,  and  you  will  never 
find  a  French  Canadian  who  will  use  forcible  means  to  obtain 
it.  That  is,  they  never  go  to  a  shop,  and  try  to  drive  people 
out  who  are  willing  to  work,  or  use  any  violent  means  what- 
ever to  accomplish  this  object.  If  that  is  the  only  way  to 
obtain  it,  you  cannot  expect  the  French  Canadians  to  assist  in 
its  enforcement. 

Mr.  Wright.  You  think  the  French  people,  as  a  people, 
are  in  favor  of  the  system  ? 

Mr.  MoNTMARQUET.  That  is  so,  certainly,  but  they  won't 
strike  for  it.  That  we  can  prove  at  any  time.  We  are  pre- 
pared to  prove  it  here.  If  I  could  talk  better  English,  I 
would  translate  these  resolutions  that  we  passed  in  our  na- 
tional convention  in  Waterville.  You  would  see  by  them 
what  is  the  spirit  of  the  French  population,  what  they  make 
out,  what  they  want  done,  and  what  they  work  for,  —  for  we 
stand  by  what  is  contained  in  thu>o  resolutions.  We  are  for 
them  in  Maine,  in  New  Hampshire,  in  all  the  United  States. 
The  convention  is  the  echo  of  our  Avishes  everywhere. 

[At  this  point  the  noon  recess  was  taken.] 

At  the  afternoon  session,  Mr.  Montmarquet  resumed  his 
statement. 

Q.  (By  Mr.  Wright.)  You  have  travelled  through  the 
New  England  States '/ 

A.     Yes,  sir. 

Q.     And  especially  among  the  French  Canadians  ? 

A.     Yes,  sir. 

Q.     Have  you  travelled  among  the  French  in  Connecticut? 

A.  Yes,  sir,  but  not  so  often  as  among  the  French  in 
other  places;  but  I  have  made  a  tour  of  Connecticut. 

Q.  State  whether  the  Canadians  in  Connecticut  have  any 
large  centres  of  population,  or  whether  they  are  more  in 
scattered  communities  ? 


64 


STATISTICS   OF   LABOR. 


«l 


A.  In  the  places  visited  by  me,  a  very  large  proportion  of 
the  population  is  French. 

Q.  What  is  the  condition  of  the  French  Canadians  in  Con- 
necticut compared  with  the  condition  of  the  French  in  Massa- 
chusetts ? 

A.  I  don't  see  any  difference,  except  that  they  are  not 
proprietors  so  much  in  Connecticut  as  in  Massachusetts,  but 
from  what  I  have  noticed  I  think  there  are  more  French 
schools.  In  small  villages  there  are  one  or  two  French  schools 
where  they  teach  French  and  English,  —  what  we  call  private 
schools.  I  think  there  is  a  larger  proportion  in  Connecticut 
than  in  other  places  I  visited.  In  one  small  village  there  are 
two  schools,  and  they  are  prosperous. 

Q.     How  would  their  habits  and  general  living  compare  ? 

-.4.  The  VQXY  ^"«^bits  they  brought  from  Canada ;  they  will 
be  out  doors  t?.iking  and  singing  between  themselves.  They 
are  just  like  the  French  in  Canadian  villages.  They  like  to 
sing,  and  they  arc  a  little  noisy,  but  always  friendly ;  and  I 
think  their  morals  are  just  as  pure  as  in  Canada. 

Q.  They  have  not  the  organization  which  the  French  in 
Canada  have  ? 

A.  1  don't  think  they  have  so  many  societies  as  in  Massa- 
chusetts and  New  Hampshire. 

Q.  I  notice  that  Connecticut  is  rarely  represented  in  your 
conventions ;  I  don't  know  that  I  ever  noticed  where  it  has 
been  represented. 

A.  They  were  represented  once  in  Worcester,  but  I  don't 
think  they  were  active  there. 

Q.     Generally  they  have  not  been  represented  ? 

A.  I  think  that  was  the  only  time.  They  have  no  French 
newspaper  there,  and  that  is  a  great  drawback  ;  and  the  fact 
is,  I  think,  if  they  had  one,  it  would  be  one  too  many,  although 
those  that  are  published  manage  to  live ;  but  that  State  is 
so  near  Massachusetts  that  they  all  subscribe  for  the  Massa- 
chusetts papers. 

Q.  (By  Mr.  Dubuque.)  Now,  I  want  to  know  if  the 
French  are  as  numerous  in  Connecticut,  for  instance,  as  they 
are  in  Massachusetts,  comparatively?  Have  you  any  par- 
ticular statistics,  or  a  general  idea  ? 

A.  Take  the  whole  State  together,  of  course  there  are  more 
French  in  Massachusetts  than  in  Connecticut;   but  take  a 


!'f; 


THE  CANADIAN  FRENCH. 


55 


town  in  Massachusetts  that  has,  let  us  say,  twenty  thousand 
inhabitants,  and  one  in  Connecticut  that  has  only  twelve 
thousand,  and  in  proportion,  I  think,  you  will  find  more 
Canadians  in  Connecticut  than  in  Massachusetts,  —  the  pro- 
portion is  larger. 

Q.  If  you  have  noticed,  as  a  chronicler  of  events,  can  you 
tell  us  how  long  since  the  French  people  have  gone  into 
Connecticut  to  settle  ? 

A.  I  cannot  tell  you.  When  I  went  there  I  took  the 
number  of  the  population,  the  different  manufactories,  the 
prices  of  labor  in  the  different  places,  their  condition,  the 
number  of  voters,  etc. ;  but  I  can't  go  any  further  than  that. 

Professor  N.  Cyr,  of  Boston,  next  appeared,  and  said  : 

Mr.  Chief  of  the  Bureau  of  Statistics,  —  I  would  say  that  it 
is  mostly  as  chairman  of  a  committee  that  was  formed  within 
a  few  days  in  Boston,  that  I  appear  at  this  audience.  In 
Boston  we  do  not  feel  personally  insulted,  as  our  brethren 
have  been  in  other  places ;  but  we  have  felt  that  belonging 
to  the  same  race,  to  the  same  nationality,  we  could  not  let 
this  opportunity  pass  without  taking  some  interest  in  this 
hearing;  and  the  Canadian  Institute,  which  is  the  main 
organization  of  French  Canadians  here,  invited  me  to  attend 
a  meeting,  and  there  we  organized  a  committee.  This  oom- 
mittee  immediately  went  to  work,  and  we  sent,  not  kn  )wing 
what  Mr.  Gagnon  had  done  on  his  own  responsibility,  — we 
sent  to  various  places  as  we  happened  to  know  the  names  of 
individuals.  And,  consider!  r^  that  we  had  such  a  short  time 
to  do  the  work,  we  have  received  quite  a  number  of  answers ; 
and  I  will,  before  proceeding  further,  give  a  few  of  the  par- 
ticulars which  we  have  been  able  to  gather.  Several  have 
told  us  verbally,  since  coming  here,  that,  inasmuch  as  they 
had  already  sent  their  statistics  to  Mr.  Gagnon,  they  did  not 
feel  the  necessity  of  sending  them  to  us.  I  have  a  report 
here  from  Clinton  County,  which  I  will  leave  with  the  Bu- 
reau. There  is  one  fact  in  it  that  strikes  me,  —  that  in  that 
county  there  are  6,000  French  Canadians  that  have  been 
naturalized ;  in  Clinton  County  alone.  New  York.  There  are 
6,000  who  have  been  naturalized,  there  are  1,850  owners  of 
real  estate,  and  the  report  in  other  respects  is  equally  very 
interesting.  There  are  2,500  children  attending  the  public 
schools.     I  have  received  also  from  Winooski,  Vt.,  a  letter 


1 


66 


STATISTICS   OF  LABOR. 


containing  statistics,  and  there  are  a  few  facts  in  it  to  which 
I  will  call  your  attention.  Under  the  head,  "  Canadians  nat- 
uralized, how  many  ?  "  we  find  "almost  all ;  "  almost  all  — that 
is  a  pretty  good  showing.  I  think  these  gentlemen,  these 
Canadians,  do  not  expect  to  go  back  to  Canada,  very  soon, 
at  any  rate.  Here  is  another  point  with  regard  to  the  Cana- 
dians, about  criminals ;  but  I  would  just  read  the  blank  that 
we  sent.  Title:  "Canadian  statistics,"  giving  the  place;  first, 
"  Number  of  Canadians ; "  second,  "  Number  of  Canadian 
churches"  (because,  of  course,  if  they  establish  churches  it 
shows  that  they  exuect  to  remain  there.  They  would  not 
build  expensive  churches,  as  they  do,  unless  they  intended 
to  remain ;  and  in  that  respect,  gentlemen,  they  are  very  dif- 
ferent from  the  Chinese,  because  we  have  not  yet  the  privi- 
lege of  having  a  Chinese  temple  in  Boston,  so  far  as  I  know.) 
In  the  third  place.  "  Number  (»f  Canadian  pupils  in  the  parish 
schools."  We  respect  the  liberty  of  conscience ;  and  as  we 
respect  conscience  we  say  that  if  people  find  fault  with  the 
public  schools,  for  one  reason  or  another,  they  have  the  right 
of  building  their  own  s(!liools  provided  they  support  them. 
Then  :  "  How  many  in  the  public  schools  ?  ''  Sixth,  "  Cana- 
dians naturalized?"  Seventh,  "How  many  who  have  made 
their  declaration  ? '"  I  think  it  would  not  look  very  well  on 
the  part  of  any  officers  of  the  State  of  Massachusetts,  or  any- 
where else  in  this  great  country,  to  find  fault  with  the  French 
Canadians  because  they  did  not  get  naturalized  the  first  year 
they  come  to  the  country.  I  know  some  people  who  come 
from  Europe  and  are  naturalized  the  first  year ;  but  we  don't 
work  on  that  plan.  We  don't  believe  in  love  at  first  sight; 
we  want  to  get  acquainted  a  little  with  the  country,  and 
see  how  things  look  here,  before  we  really,  to  use  a  common 
expression,  "  pop  the  question  ; "  and  I  think  it  speaks  very 
well  for  the  French  people  that  they  wait  a  little  while  before 
they  even  mak..  their  declaration.  And,  of  course,  they  must 
understand  English  first.  That  is  one  thing  that  is  abso- 
lutely necessary. 

There  is  another  thing  here,  and  just  allow  me  to  speak 
of  it.  I  think  I  am  a  thorough  American  citizen,  and  I 
have  been  so  for  many  years;  and  I  must  say  that  it  was  a 
blessed  day  when  I  was  able  to  exchange  my  condition  of  a 
British  subject,  which  was  only  a  thing  of  accident,  not  of 


im 


THE   CANADIAN    FRENCH. 


57 


my  own  choice,  for  that  of  the  position  and  the  privileges  of 
an  American  citizen.  I  tliink  it  was  one  of  the  brightest 
days  of  my  life  when  I  was  able  to  thus  become,  not  a  sub- 
ject, but  a  citizen.  For,  according  to  the  theory  of  our  gov- 
ernment in  this  country,  which  I  think  is  the  highest,  and 
the  most  philosophical,  and  the  most  humane,  every  man  is 
both  a  citizen  and  a  king,  —  a  king  to  govern  himself  and  to 
govern  the  country ;  and,  because  he  is  not  able  to  attend 
to  the  affairs  of  the  country,  then  he  appoints  a  president  to 
whom  he  delegates  his  authority ;  but  he  is  still  a  king, 
every  American  citizen  is  a  king,  and  he  only  delegates  his 
authority  to  the  president.  Now,  I  think  it  speaks  well  for  a 
nation  to  have  patriotism ;  that  is,  to  feel  the  love  of  its  na- 
tive country.  I  think  it  is  one  of  the  highest  sentiments  that 
we  can  find  in  the  human  heart,  the  love  of  the  native  land; 
and  therefore,  if  the  Canadians  do  not  immediately  become 
American  citizens,  and  wait  a  little  while  out  of  love  for 
their  native  country,  it  shows,  I  think,  that,  when  they  be- 
come American  citizens,  they  will  be  better  citizens. 

Another  point  was,  how  many  societies  of  St.  John  the 
Baptist.  Now,  Americans  probably  would  not  understand 
what  these  societies  are.  They  are  most  useful  societies; 
they  are  mutual  aid  associations,  and  therefore  destined  to 
do  an  excellent  work.  Instead  of  going  U  the  town  to  get 
charity,  the  members  of  that  society  have  a  claim  upon  it. 
Then  there  are  what  we  call  literary  clubs,  and  societies  of 
various  kinds.  There  are  quite  a  number  of  dr.imatic  socie- 
ties which  show  that  the  French  are  true  to  their  origin,  — 
that  is,  they  like  the  drama ;  and  these  societies,  so  far  as  I 
know,  have  always  presen  dd  to  the  public  the  most  moral 
pieces  that  have  ever  been  published  in  French. 

Now,  in  Winooski,  Vt.,  a  small  place  where  there  are  only 
a  few  mills,  there  is  one  Society  of  St.  John  the  Baptist,  there 
is  one  of  those  clubs,  and,  with  regard  to  criminals,  they  say 
that  there  are  not  any.  It  seems  to  me  that  it  speaks  very 
well  for  a  locality  to  be  able  to  make  this  showing.  But  I 
will  not  dwell  any  longer  on  this,  because  most  of  these  points 
have  been  presented. 

I  have  also  been  requested  to  represent  Boston.  In  Bos- 
ton we  have  but  very  few  French  Canadians,  comparatively. 
In  fact,  we  have  very  few  people  of  the  French  race  alto- 


r 


: ,  ii^i'  i 


58 


STATISTICS  OF  LABOR. 


gether.  The  French  race,  taking  the  French  born  in  France 
and  i.i  Canada,  altogether  make  only  a  small  community 
here  ;  but  still,  taking  the  French  Canadians,  I  will  give  you 
just  a  few  statistics  which  I  have  noted  down,  and  then  with 
a  few  remarks  I  will  close.  Now,  in  Boston  we  have  three 
physicians,  three  dentists,  two  teachers  of  French,  and,  I  think, 
nearly  a  hundred  clerks.  I  will  say  here  that  these  clerks 
are  found  in  the  largest  stores,  at  Jordan,  Marsh,  &  Co.'s, 
at  White's;  and  their  services  are  very  much  appreciated, 
because  they  have  something  which  is  peculiar  to  them,  pecu- 
liar to  their  race,  —  they  are  exceedingly  polite,  and  they  do 
not  do  exactly  as  some  nationalities  do,  who  sometimes  think 
they  are  really  rendering  you  a  service  by  showing  you 
goods.  The  French  clerks  are  exceedingly  polite,  and  other- 
wise they  show  that  they  are  ready  to  do  any  thing  that  they 
can.  Then,  I  might  say,  we  have  men  in  Boston  who  have 
written  a  good  deal  of  French,  and  some  French  that  will 
compare  with  the  French  of  France.  There  is  a  very  svrange 
idea  among  even  educated  Americans  in  Boston  and  else- 
where, that  the  French  of  Canada  is  altogether  different  from 
the  French  of  France,  so  different  that  a  Frenchman  could 
not  understand  it.  That  is  a  great  mistake.  The  French  of 
the  educated  people  of  Montreal  and  Quebec  will  compare 
very  favorably  with  the  French  of  Lyons  or  of  Bordeaux 
and  of  other  large  cities  of  France.  Of  course  Paris  is  the 
greatest  literary  centre,  and  a  man  from  Lyons  or  Bordeaux 
will  go  to  Paris  to  finish  his  French ;  and  so  a  man  from 
Montreal  or  Quebec  will  go  to  Paris  to  improve  his  French. 
We  have  one  man  in  Boston  who  is  a  real  poet.  There  is 
one  church  composed  mostly  of  French  Canadians.  There  is 
one  mutual  aid  society.  There  is  a  literary  society  composed 
of  eighty  members,  called  the  "  Canadian  Institute,"  having 
a  library  and  reading-room,  and  there  are  lectures  and  politi- 
cal discussions  there  every  week ;  and  certainly,  when  I  see 
these  young  men,  these  clerks,  who  are  willing  to  pay  from 
six  to  ten  dollars  a  year  in  order  to  sustain  a  society,  and 
when  I  see  the  American  clerks  who  for  one  dollar  can  be 
members  of  the  Christian  Association  or  the  Christian  Union, 
and  there  have  almost  every  thing  except  board  and  lodging,  I 
think  it  speaks  very  well  for  the  French  Canadians  that  they 
are  willing  to  contribute  so  largely  to  sustain  this  institution. 


THE   CANADIAN   FRENCH. 


69 


I  may  ntate  also  that  there  is  ii  French  iit^v^spaper  nnlled 
"Le  Rdpubh'cpl.u,"  which  I  have  founded  with  the  view  of 
presenting  American  institutions  under  their  true  light.  And 
so,  here  in  Boston,  though  the  French  are  not  numerous,  yet 
they  can  make  a  pretty  fair  showing.  I  must  say  that  I 
never  heard  of  any  being  brought  before  a  court  of  justice. 
There  may  be  some ;  I  should  not  be  surprised  if  there  were, 
a  dozen  or  more  ;  but  I  never  heard  of  any. 

Now,  with  these  remarks,  I  will  say  that  my  impression  lias 
been, — and  I  have  travelled  somewhat  through  New  Eng- 
land, and  have  lectured  both  in  French  and  in  English  in  a 
good  many  places,  —  that  I  have  found  the  French  everywhere 
a  docile  people,  a  kind-hearted  people,  and  the  only  fault  I 
find  is  that  they  are  almost  too  humble.  That  is  about  the 
only  fault  I  find  with  them,  that  they  have  not  come  yet  to 
that  feeling  of  independence  which  all  Americans  have,  and, 
when  the  French  operative  goes  to  offer  his  services,  he  looks 
too  much  like  a  beggar,  whilst  he  should  feel  like  a  man  who 
has  a  treasure  to  offer.  He  goes  to  the  capitalist,  and  what 
can  be  the  capitalist  do  without  the  sturdy  hand  of  the 
laborer?  What  is  the  use  of  having  all  this  machinery  unless 
there  are  men  to  run  it  ?  And  I  think  that  on  the  part  of 
those  capitalists,  those  manufacturers,  who  have  spoken  dis- 
paragingly of  the  French,  it  is  showing  very  little  humanity. 
Though  we  do  not  believe  in  strikes  or  in  revolutions,  or  in 
setting  up  labor  against  capital,  we  live  in  an  age  of  progress, 
when  every  man  feels  his  responsibility  and  his  worth ;  and 
there  is  no  place  better  fitted  than  the  United  States  of  Amer- 
ica to  develop  personal  resources  and  personal  worth ;  and  I 
say  that,  unless  capital  will  do  what  is  just,  labor  will  right  it 
some  time.  It  would  be  a  great  deal  better  for  capital,  at  the 
present  time,  to  do  what  is  right,  what  is  humane,  what  is 
honest,  what  is  Christian,  in  order  to  prevent  this  overturn- 
ing that  may  happen  he^e  as  it  has  in  the  Old  World.  And 
in  conclusion  I  may  say  that  I  am  very  glad  that  this  hearing 
has  taken  place,  for  I  think  it  will  be  for  the  benefit  of  both 
Americans  and  French  Canadians,  and  when  we  all  become 
American  citizens,  and  all  feel  that  they  are  under  the  same 
flag,  —  oh,  how  natural  it  is  for  the  French  Canadian  to  be 
under  the  United  States  flag !  Have  you  not  noticed  that 
the  colors  are  the  same  ?    The  tri-color,  the  colors  are  the 


60 


STATISTICS   OF   LABOR. 


I 
i 


Kk 


same,  and  only  the  stars  here  are  added.  I  suppose  the  stars 
mean  a  little  more  light.  Very  well :  we  will  accept  a  little 
more  light,  and  profit  by  it. 

Mr.  Wright.  I  should  like  to  ask  Mr.  Cyr  if  he  has  trav- 
elled much  in  Connecticut,  or  is  much  ac(iuainted  with  the 
condition  of  the  French  Canadians  in  that  State? 

Mr.  Cyr.  A  few  years  aj^o  I  was  in  Baltic,  for  instance. 
I  saw  there  a  very  large  population  and  a  very  thriving  pop- 
ulation, before  the  failure  of  the  owners  of  the  mills.  I  have 
seen  also  in  Vermont,  I  have  been  through  there,  and  seen 
the  Canadians  in  Burlington,  who  occupy  a  very  important 
position  there.  I  have  seen  the  French  Canadians  also  in  the 
marble  quarries  of  Rutland,  Vt.  I  have  seen  them  in  White- 
hall and  Cohoes  and  in  Troy  find  in  Albany  ;  and  in  all  these 
places  I  have  noticed  the  same  characteristics,  the  same  ear- 
nestness to  work.  They  have  come  here  to  work.  They  are 
not  adventurers  like  some  people  of  other  nationalities,  but 
thev  have  come  here  to  work,  and  to  find  what  have  been 
well  styled  "  the  three  important  things,  —  space,  bread,  and 
liberty." 

Mr.  Wright.  You  have  heard  the  statements  made  in  the 
hearing  with  regard  to  repatriation :  what  have  you  to  say  of 
your  own  experience  and  knowledge  on  that  subject? 

Mr.  Cyr.  My  impression  is,  so  far  as  I  have  been  able  to 
observe,  that  there  are  farmers,  who,  owing  to  bad  crops  or 
to  various  other  things,  get  a  little  involved  :  they  are  obliged 
to  borrow  money ;  and  they  mortgage  their  property,  and 
then  they  come  here  with  a  view  of  earning  enough  money 
to  go  back,  and  take  up  the  mortgage,  and  settle  down  again. 
Now,  they  are  farmers;  they  seem  to  be  more  inclined  to 
farming.  We  want  farmers  just  as  much  as  we  need  opera- 
tives in  the  mills ;  and  these  persons  not  only  have  a  perfect 
right,  after  they  have  earned  their  money  honestly,  to  go  back 
to  Canada,  and  take  up  their  mortgages,  and  then  have  a 
better  position :  I  think  some  do  that.  But  I  have  noticed 
another  fact,  —  that,  when  a  person  has  been  here  for  a  year 
or  more,  Canada  does  not  seem  to  be  exactly  the  same  thing. 
A  man's  ideas  change.  Of  course  we  judge  of  things  by 
comparison.  I  remember,  before  I  went  to  Europe,  when  I 
was  a  student,  there  used  to  be  a  hill  in  the  locality  where  I 
was.     I  thought  it  was  a  very  nice  hill,  quite  a  hill ;  but  when 


THE   CANADIAN    FRENCH. 


61 


I  had  been  in  the  Alps,  and  sisctMided  iis  far  as  9,200  feet,  and 
oaine  hack,  I  said,  "  Where  is  the  hill  ?  *"  The  hill  seemed  to 
he  gone;  my  ideas  had  ciianged.  And  so,  when  people  have 
been  in  this  country  any  time,  a  certain  number,  when  they 
go  back,  they  do  not  find  the  hill,  and  are  not  satisfied,  and  a 
great  many  of  them  will  come  back  here.  Their  children 
will  certainly  come.  If  the  old  people  will  not  come  back, 
their  children  will  come,  or  a  great  many  of  them,  so  that 
the  proportion  of  those  who  have  been  here  a  year  or  more, 
who  go  back  to  Canada,  and  settle  down,  I  think,  must  be 
very  small. 

Mr.  WuiGHT.  Briefly,  your  idea  is,  that  the  tendency  to 
permanency  has  gained  strength? 

Mr.  Cyr.     I  think  it  i»  gaining  all  the  time. 

Mr.  Gacjnon.  Many  come  with  the  idea  of  earning  money 
to  pay  off  their  mortgages.  With  Uie  aid  of  a  confrere  in 
Worcester  J  have  written  some  papers  for  them,  and  I  am 
quite  sure  that  others  could  testify  as  I  do  that  many  of  them 
come  w  ith  this  idea ;  l)ut  we  write  more  papers  for  those  who 
are  in  Canada,  buying  from  those  who  are  here  and  hold  prop- 
erty there,  than  for  those  who  want  to  return.  They  come 
with  this  idea  of  going  back,  but  their  ideas  change,  and  they 
sell  their  property  to  land  owners  in  Canada.  You  seem, 
Mr.  Wright,  to  speak  of  Connecticut  more  than  of  other 
States. 

Mr.  Wright.  Before  you  came  in  I  called  the  attention 
of  gentlemen  to  the  fact  that  I  had  noticed  Connecticut  had 
not  been  represented  in  conventions  as  much  as  the  other 
States:  in  fact,  I  see  Connecticut  mentioned  very  seldom. 

Mr.  (xAGNON.  They  have  been  represented  in  1879  in 
Worcester,  and  in  Rhode  Island  in  1880.  And  there  is  a 
movement  on  foot  now  to  liave  a  convention  in  Connecticut. 
I  have  here  a  number  of  statem*  nts.^ 

Mr.  Dubuque.  We  wiP  now  present  to  you  some  evi- 
dence from  a  man  who  has  been  employed  by  manufacturers 
in  Massachusetts  to  go  into  Connecticut,  New  Hampshire, 
and  Maine,  to  get  families  to  come  to  work  in  Massachusetts. 
He  has  visited  the  French  families,  has  talked  with  them,  and 
they  have  expressed  the  desire  to  come  to  live  in  Massachu- 
setts, where  the  hours  of  labor  are  shorter. 

1  See  statistics  of  Grosvenordale,  Putnam,  Baltic,  and  Meri(l#i,  presented 
in  connection  with  Mr.  Gagnon's  statement,  pp.  18  and  1!)  ante. 


f 


M 


STATISTICS   OF   LABOR. 


m 


Statement  of  Mr.  Edward  J.  L'IIkuault  :  — 

Qnestinn.  (Hy  Mr.  Duiujque.)  Your  occupation  is  that 
of  a  constable  of  Fall  River  ? 

A.     Yes,  sir. 

^>.     Mow  lonj?  liave  you  lived  in  this  State? 

A.  Twelve  years  in  the  State  of  Massachusetts.  I  lived 
prior  to  that  in  the  State  of  Rhode  Island,  and  three  years  in 
the  State  of  New  Hampshire. 

Q.  You  were  about  nine  years  old  when  you  came  to  this 
country  ? 

A.     Yes,  sir. 

Q.  Please  state  what  experience  you  have  had  with  the 
manufacturers  of  Fall  River  with  regard  to  getting  families 
from  other  States,  and  your  observations  concerning  the 
Frencii  people  in  this  and  other  States. 

^1.  My  experience  with  the  laboring  people  has  not  been 
confined  to  Fall  River  only;  for  I  have  been  employed  as 
much,  if  not  more,  by  New  York  and  Connecticut  parties  to 
get  help  for  them,  as  for  Fall  River.  I  have  always  found 
that  wherever  I  went  to  a  place  to  get  help  for  the  factories, 
brickyards,  or  any  other  employment,  that  the  French  peo- 
ple were  very  anxious  to  find  out  whether  I  wanted  to  take 
them  where  they  were  working  more  than  ten  hours  a  day. 
Several  of  them  remarked  that  where  they  had  such  long 
hours  it  confined  their  childrer  in  the  mill,  depriving  them 
of  all  the  privileges  of  getting  an  education  in  the  day  or 
night  schools.  Wiiere  they  worked  only  ten  hours  it  would 
leave  them  an  hour  or  two,  but  in  Connecticut  they  worked 
twelve  hours  per  day.  That  seemed  to  be  the  greatest  objec- 
tion to  their  remaining  there.  Last  week  I  visited  Grosve- 
nordale,  Conn. 

Q.     In  whose  interest  were  you  working  then  ? 

A.  In  the  interest  of  a  Fall  River  corporation,  the  Border 
City  Manufacturing  Company,  who  had  just  erected  a  new 
mill ;  and  I  found  there  a  large  number  of  people  who  were 
ready  and  willing  to  go  to  Fall  River  to  work.  As  the  wages 
are  a  little  higher,  that  was  some  inducement ;  but  that  in 
itself  did  not  seem  to  be  enough  to  decide  them  to  leave 
the  place  where  they  first  came  to  the  States;  because  I 
might  mention  here  that  the  French  people  in  Connecticut, 
in  general,  have  not  lived  in  the  States  long.    I  found  in 


f:: 


THE  CANADIAN   FRENCH. 


63 


places  such  fts  (irosvenordule,  some  parts  of  Baltic,  and  in 
the  manufacturing  districts  along  the  Connecticut  River, 
whore  there  were  Canadians  (not  so  much  in  Willimantic  as 
in  Baltic  and  in  other  places  owned  hy  the  Spragues),  that 
the  majority  of  the  help  were  people  from  Canada,  brought 
there  at  the  expense  of  the  manufacturers;  and,  in  order  to 
work  out  the  cost  which  the  company  had  been  put  to,  they 
had  to  be  submitted  to  long  hours  of  toil.  And,  as  a  rule,  just 
as  soon  as  they  can  pay  off  the  company  (and  it  takes  them  a 
long  time :  the  company  furnishes  them  all  the  necessaries  of 
life  at  their  own  price),  as  soon  as  they  caii  get  clear,  as  they 
term  it,  "get  scjuare  with  the  corporation,"  they  seek  employ- 
ment elsewhere  for  the  reasons  I  have  stated,  —  in  order  to 
give  their  children  a  longer  time  to  go  to  school,  and  not  keep 
them  at  work  so  long.  In  Grosvenordale,  for  instance,  the 
mill  owners  have  brought,  during  the  last  year,  more  than 
twenty  families,  of  which  about  five  have  left  the  place. 
They  have  left  there  to  go  to  other  parts  of  the  State,  not  to 
return  to  Canada,  but  to  go  to  other  parts  of  the  State,  and 
to  Massachusetts.  I  have  always  found  them  working,  or 
seeking  employment  where  they  were  working  no  more  than 
ten  hours  a  day,  —  from  Grosvenordale  and  other  places  in 
Connecticut  and  Rhode  Island  also. 

Q.  How  many  families  have  you  brought  to  Fall  River 
within  the  last  year  ? 

A.  I  don't  know  as  I  could  state  with  any  accuracy.  A 
great  deal  of  the  lielp  we  brought  there  was  single  help. 
There  were  probably  twenty-five  or  thirty  families. 

Q.  What  arrangements  have  the  manufacturers  made  in 
Fall  River  with  those  French  families  ? 

A.  The  arrangement  varies  with  different  corporations. 
The  corporations  furnish  a  tenement,  of  course,  and  if  the 
family  are  in  need  they  will  pay  their  expenses  to  Fall  River ; 
and,  if  they  are  so  in  need  that  they  cannot  buy  the  neces- 
saries of  life,  they  get  some  provision  dealer  to  furnish  them, 
and  take  it  out  of  their  pay. 

Q.  Now,  have  you  noticed  any  tiling  about  the  French 
people,  about  literary  or  benevolent  societies  and  schools? 
whether  in  Connecticut  or  Massachusetts,  or  other  places 
where  you  have  lived  or  visited  ? 

A.    I  scarcely  visited  a  place  for  the  last  five  years  where 


64 


STATISTICS   OF   LABOR. 


.,. 


t 


I  have  not  found  parochial  schools  among  the  French,  even- 
ing schools  and  day  schools ;  and,  as  a  rule,  the  children  al- 
ways attend  the  public  schools  when  they  haven't  another 
school  of  their  choice. 

Q.  Whether  or  not  the  French  are  so  permanently  located 
in  those  places  where  there  is  no  French  church  as  they  are 
where  there  is  one  ? 

A.  No,  sir:  the  French  people  like  to  cluster  around  the 
old  church,  and  where  there  is  not  a  church  they  generally 
build  one,  if  they  are  strong  enough :  if  not  they  will  go 
where  there  are  enough  of  their  kind  to  help  them  to  build 
a  churcii.     If  near  a  churcii  they  are  by  far  more  stationary. 

Q.  Now,  wh other  or  not  any  manufacturers  in  Fall  River 
have  made  statements  to  you  with  regard  to  French  help, 
either  coming  from  Canada  or  other  places,  as  compared  with 
the  other  nationalities? 

A.  If  I  should  report  the  statements  made  many  times  l:)y 
our  manufacturers,  I  should  be  afraid  i  'nirt  the  feelings  of 
some  one.  But  I  would  say  that  in  every  case  where  I  have 
been  sent  out^  ihey  wanted  me  to  do  all  in  my  power  to  get 
some  French  help  for  them.  They  say,  first,  they  like  them 
because  the  day  after  pay-day  they  ave  sure  of  having  a 
Frenchman  at  work  ;  whereas  the  others  are  generally  get- 
ting on  the  way  an  introduction  to  some  magistrate  for 
having  drank  too  much  the  day  before.  I  see  that  in  Fall 
River  by  actual  observation  this  is  true.  And  then  they  are 
not  80  apt  to  rebel  as  the  others.  For  instance,  the  manu- 
facturers always  object  to  getting  the  people  from  Lan- 
cashire, —  who  recently  have  come  from  there.  They  are 
good  help,  good  workers;  but  they  are  apt  to  rebel,  and  lead 
others  to  do  so.  The  French  help  are  always  found  at  v/ork, 
and  are  not  miserly  of  an  hour  if  it  was  necessary  to  benefit 
their  employer.  I  have  always  found  them  ready  to  work. 
They  are  quiet ;  they  don't  raise  much  disturbance  around 
the  factory  village ;  they  scarcely  ever  fight  among  them- 
selves ;  whereas  that  is  a  thing  which  is  very  often  the  case 
with  other  help,  —  they  have  a  great  deal  more  fighting  and 
rowdy ing  around  the  corporations  than  in  other  places. 

Q.  As  to  their  social  customs,  herding  together  and  meet- 
ing together  to  chat  ? 

A.     They  are  quiet.    During  the  hours  of  rest  in  the  week 


THE   CANADIAN   FRENCH. 


66 


you  will  find  them  sitting  together  in  a  circle  in  each  other's 
houses,  and  they  will  there  discuss  one  topic  and  another ; 
they  will  gather  round  ibout  those  who  have  the  most  in- 
teresting newspaper,  and  one  will  read  while  the  others  will 
listen,  and  pass  the  time  in  tha*  way.  They  very  seldom  have 
any  great  feast.  They  sometimes  get  together,  and  have  a 
pretty  good  time  ;  but  there  is  scarcely  ever  any  disturban»;e 
that  would  amount  to  any  disturbance  of  the  peace. 

Q.     What  about  their  habits  as  to  temperance  ? 

A.  For  some  eight  years  past  I  have  been  employed  by 
the  courts  of  Bristol  County  as  French  interpreter,  and  I  have 
seen  as  mucih  as  two  months  without  having  one  single 
Frenchman  brought  before  the  district  court.  I  consulted 
the  return  of  our  chief  of  police  for  the  last  six  years.  In 
1875  there  were  2,441  people  arrested  by  the  police,  65  of 
whom  were  French  or  born  in  Canada.  The  French  popula- 
tion of  Fall  River  was  about  one-sixth  of  the  entire  population. 
In  1876  there  were  2,301  arrested,  of  whom  there  were  63 
born  in  Canada.  The  popuLicion  then  was  about  the  same 
as  the  year  before.  It  has  not  much  increased,  although  it 
has  increased  somewhat.  In  1877  the  total  number  of  arrests 
was  2,419;  Canadians,  119.  In  1878,  1,945;  Canadians,  106. 
In  1879,  1,664 ;  Canadians,  89.  In  1880,  1,881 ;  Canadians, 
120.  The  number  for  the  six  years  was  12,651,  of  whom  562 
were  of  Canadian  birth,  or  about  4.5  per  cent.  Of  those 
who  have  been  arrested  and  reported  as  of  Canadian  birth, 
there  are  a  large  number  who  are  not  recognized  as  Cana- 
dians, but  who  are  cute  enough  to  give  their  place  of  birth 
as  Canada ;  but  when  we  see  them  tlie  next  day  we  know 
that  they  were  not  born  there.  TI10^'J  that  are  arrested  are, 
as  a  rule,  the  same  ones  erery  year  or  every  month.  I  don't 
believe  there  were  twenty-five  'lifferent  Canadians  arrested 
in  Fall  River  last  year.  The  Freji/;h  population  now  is  close 
on  to  eleven  thousaucu  making  the  {x^rcentage  of  crime  among 
the  French  very  small.  Of  couri^e  tiiere  is  a  certain  number 
of  our  population  which  is  never  «*untiuned  iji  the  courts,  and 
so,  taking  it  among  the  operatives,  —  they  are  about  the  only 
ones,  comparatively,  the  mechanics,  who  are  brought  before 
the  court,  —  and,  taking  it  in  that  way,  there  are  certainly 
eight  or  ten  of  the  others  compared  with  one  of  them. 

Rev.   Father   Millut,  of   Nashua,  N.H.,  then   said:    In 


66 


STATISTICS  OF  LABOR. 


■ 


the  beginning  of  my  statement  I  will  say  that  I  corroborate, 
as  far  as  I  can  remember,  much  of  the  remarks  which  have 
been  made   in  general   by  my  friend   Mr.  Gagnon  on  the 
general  statement  which  is  the  subject  matter  of  this  investi- 
gation.   At  a  meeting  I,  together  with  one  other,  was  chosen 
to  come  and  present  our  cause  before  this  hearing.     They 
could  have  chosen  heavy  business  men,  but  they  chose  a 
workingman,  possibly  because  they  were  most  interested  in 
the  case.    We  have  not  had  time,  having  received  these  ques- 
tions only  Saturday ;  and,  being  very  busy  in  a  very  numer- 
ous parish,  I  cannot  express  myself  on  every  question  and 
go  into  detail  upon  the  subject  matter  of  the  investigation, 
but  still  I  will  give  such  figures  as  I  have  been  able  to  collect. 
The  total  population  of  our  city  is  about  13,307  by  the  last 
census.    I  have  not  made  imy  census  for  some  three  or  four 
years  past,  but  still  the  French  population  amounts  to  over 
3,000,  —  nearer    4,000   than    otherwise,   having    more   than 
doubled  in  the  ten  years  that  I  have  been  there.     Since  that 
time  this  population  has  built  one  cliurch  and  one  parochial 
residence,  and  the  debts  on  these  two  institutions  are  very 
small  comparatively.     I  find  that  amongst  our  parishioners 
there  are  fifty-one  or  thereabouts  real  estate  owners.    Some  of 
them  are  owners  not  only  of  one  liouse,  but  of  three  or  even 
four  houses.     As  to  a  statement  of  their  fiuancial  condition  I 
have  not  gone  to  the  banks  to  collect  that,  but  I  remember  that 
ten  years  ago,  in  one  of  the  banks  where  I  was  doing  business, 
one  of  the  directors  told  me  tliat  at  that  time  or  thereabouts 
the  French  had  over  fifty  thousand  doHars  in  that  one  savings 
bank.     Of  those  who  went  away  during  the  space  of  ten 
years,  the  number  is  very  small.     Of  those  who  went  away  to 
stay,  it  is  very  small  indeed.     I  could  not  give  you  the  exact 
figures,  but  I  don't  know  as  I  could  find  ten  or  twenty  who 
went  to  remain.    Some  have  gone  to  Montana  to  settle  on 
farms,  and  some  of  then,  have  returned;  others  have  remained, 
feeling  they  are  better  off  there.     For  1880,  I  find  from  the 
school  report  that  there  were  in  the  schools  2,526  children, 
and  in  the   evening  sciiools  847 ;    the  average   attendance 
diJring  the  year  was  1,630.    Tiie  schtol  report  does  not  make 
a  classification  by  nationalities,  but  to  the  best  of  my  knowl- 
edge I  should  say  that  in  that  attendance  there  were  between 
450  and  500  in  the  day  schools,  anu  in  the  evening  school  * 


THE  CANADIAN   FRENCH. 


67 


should  almost  be  certain  a  very  large  majority  were  French 
Canadians  ;  and  not  only  was  that  the  number  in  the  schools, 
but  the  want  of  schoolrooms  was  such  that  in  this  year  they 
have  built  a  new  schoolhouse,  and  that  schoolhouse  is 
rapidly  filling  up.  We  have  of  naturalized  citizens  about  176 
or  200.  We  have  two  political  clubs,  one  for  each  party,  who 
are  very  busy  in  pressing  people  to  become  naturalized.  We 
have  also  three  piiysiciuns,  graduates  of  medical  schools,  with 
regular  university  diplomas.  We  generally  have  in  the  city 
council  one  representative,  besides  now  and  then,  —  I  could 
not  say  it  was  every  year,  —  but  I  remember  having  some  on 
the  selectmen's  board.  Generally  there  is  always  one  regular 
police  ofliL'T  l)esides  a  number  of  specials,  —  generally  be- 
tween three  an  J  four.  In  the  way  of  business  men  we  have 
about  seventeen  of  them  in  business,  of  whom  about  fourteen 
are  in  the  grocery  business  ;  thirty-two  or  so  are  clerks,  one  is 
a  baker;  and  ihere  are  a  number  of  carpenters,  which  I  have 
not  taken  the  pains  to  count.  We  have  a  parochial  library,  a 
benevolent  society  under  the  name  of  St.  John  the  Baptist, 
and  generally,  througli  the  winters,  one,  and  very  often  two, 
dramatic  clubs  who  give  representations  for  the  amusement  of 
the  people.  We  also  had,  as  representative  of  a  large  cor- 
poration, the  general  passenger  agent  of  the  Vermont  Cen- 
tral, and  also  one  for  the  Passumpsic ;  but  things  have  now 
become  changed  to  Lowell. 

The  criminal  statistics  for  1880, — those  for  1881  have  not 
been  publisli  >d,  but  I  went  to  the  police  office,  and  collected 
from  the  records,  hasHly.  these  statistics;  I  give  you  these 
figures  as  taken  hastil}  would  not  take  my  oath  on  tliem 
all,  but  still  they  are  pretty  correct,  —  I  find  that  out  of 
1,221  arrested,  61  people  belong  to  our  nationality,  French 
Canadians ;  but  I  find  also,  and  I  so  represented  to  the  city 
marshal,  that  there  were  jome  names  there  that  were  not 
French,  and  I  don't  see  how  the-  could  have  got  there ;  but 
still  I  took  them  down.  And  amoogs:  those  arrested  I  find 
two  for  playing  marbles  on  Suf   ;r    two  lor  unlawful  fishing, 

one  for  assault.     I  find  also  ^..-.. -t  tiuiu  12  lodgers,  one 

disobedient  chih.  and  I  find  23  for  drunkenness.     And  of 
these  23  drunks,  unhappily,  the  same  name  very  often  occurs. 

As  far  as  relates  to  their  being  a  burden  on  the  community, 
I  have  b^n  for  a  time  attending  the  county  farm  in  Wilton 


68 


STATISTICS  OF  LABOR. 


for  our  county  of  Hillsborough,  —  I  have  not  attended  there 
lately,  —  but  in  the  time  I  did  attend  to  it  every  other  month, 
together  with  another  confrere^  I  very,  very  seldom  found  any 
French  Canadian  there :  I  did  now  and  then,  but  it  was  very, 
very  seldom. 

As  to  their  morals  generally,  I  must  state,  —  I  will»not 
pretend  by  any  means  that  they  are  all  perfect,  by  no  means ; 
but  still  I  will  say  that  to  us  they  are  very  satisfactory,  see- 
ing the  large  number  of  young  men,  and  the  immense  seduc- 
tion of  city  life,  the  temptations  to  those  people  who  are 
unaccustomed  to  it,  —  that  their  morals  are  satisfactory.  As 
to  smoking,  I  confess  that  they  do  smoke,  and  I  myself  do. 
I  don't  blame  them  for  it ;  it  is  one  of  their  faults,  but  I  can- 
not correct  them  on  thai  item,  because  I  do  it  myself. 

As  to  their  living  beggarly,  it  is  not  often.  Not  only  myself, 
but  many  other  pastors  can  make  the  same  showing.  One  of 
the  great  reproaches  we  make  is,  that  they  spend  too  much, 
they  live  too  high,  and  they  dress  too  fine.  That  is  the  great 
evil  that  we  put  on  them.  They  live  too  high,  they  spend 
too  much.     This  is  about  all  I  can  say  concerning  Nashua. 

The  reverend  pastor  of  Manchester,  who  I  learned  yester- 
day was  unable  to  attend  hii.;:.elf,  requested  me  to  give  also  a 
few  figures  which  have  been  taken  very  hastily,  and  are  in- 
complete. In  a  population  approaching  9,000  they  have  two 
churches,  two  parochial  residences,  and  the  debts  are  very 
small,  comparatively,  for  tho  length  of  time.  There  is  now 
building  a  parochial  school  which  is  now  under  way.  They 
have  there  1.000  children  in  the  schools,  according  to  the 
report  of  18H1,  and  in  the  parochial  school  there  are  460. 
They  have  a  brasf^  band.  If  that  ca  be  considered  a  civiliz- 
ing agency,  they  have  that.  They  have  two  dramatic  clubs, 
a  large  number  of  merchants,  heavy  business  men  in  different 
kinds  of  buMiiess, — dry  ^oods  merchants,  shoe  shops, — a  large 
number  of  clerks,  the  number  of  which  I  could  not  exactl}' 
state ;  and  their  criminal  cases  amor  t  to  about  fifty  or  sixty 
for  the  time  expireu.  The\  have  there  200,  or  about  that, 
naturalized  citizens,  besides  a  number  who  have  made  their 
applications,  and  a  political  club  who  are  urging  the  matter 
on.  They  have  two  benevolent  societies,  and  a  library,  the 
same  as  Nashua.  That  is  about  all  I  can  state  concerning 
Manchester. 


I*: 


TTl 


THE  CANADIAN  FRENCH. 


69 


Concerning  Rochester,  N.H.,  I  state,  according  to  Mr. 
Gagnon,  that  the  population  amounts  to  about  5,500,  of  which 
about  600  are  French.  There  are  amongst  those  about  nine 
real  estate  owners,  and  there  are  650  children  in  the  schools : 
of  these  about  ninety  are  French  Canadians  who  have  an 
evening  school  besides.  They  have  about  twenty-five  natu- 
ralized citizens  and  men  in  business,  —  grocers,  bakers, 
butchers,  etc.,  —  and  men  in  the  liberal  professions. 

Mr.  BouDREAU,  of  Manchester,  N.H.,  editor  of  "  L'Echo 
des  Canadiens,"  then  said :  — 

I  am  a  French  Canadian  citizen  of  the  United  States.  My 
statement  is  very  much  like  that  of  Rev.  Father  Millet.  We 
who  appear  from  Manchester  were  delegated  to  represent  our 
compatriots  living  there  at  this  hearing.  I  will  be  short  in 
my  observations,  which  are  the  following :  — 

The  entire  population  of  the  city  by  the  last  census  is 
83,000,  and  of  that  number  9,000  are  French  Canadians. 
Consequently,  you  see  that  we  form  nearly  one-third  of  the 
population.  Among  our  business  men  and  establishments 
we  have  nine  grocers,  four  bakeries  and  ten  bakers,  three 
dry  goods  stores,  150  French  clerks,  who  work  mostly  for 
American  goods  dealers,  second  hands  in  the  several  manu- 
facturing companies,  and  100  third  hands.  We  have  a  jew- 
eller, 300  mechanics  and  carpenters,  and  five  boot  and  shoe 
stores.  Besides  this  we  have  a  drug  store,  five  physicians 
(graduates),  two  lawyers,  225  voters,  including  men  who 
have  taken  out  their  applications,  two  churches  (St.  Augus- 
tine and  St.  Mary),  three  priests,  a  convent  attended  by  460 
pupils :  the  remaining  French  female  children  attend  the 
public  schools.  This  represents  only  one  parish.  The  re- 
maining French  boys  also  attend  the  public  schools.  We 
have  two  benevolent  societies,  two  dramatic  clubs,  who  give 
representations  from  time  to  time.  We  have  a  reading- 
room  and  library,  two  livery  stables,  two  policemen,  two 
constables,  one  justice  of  the  peace,  a  French  brass  band, 
and  one  temperance  society. 

I  must  now  say  that  I  have  resided  in  this  country  for  the 
last  fifteen  years,  and  that  I  have  travelled  much  through 
the  different  States  of  New  England.  I  have  been  in  Man- 
chester for  five  years  only ;  but,  having  canvassed  through 
many  cities,  and  sought  at  every  place  for  information,  I  can 


70 


STATISTICS  OF  LABOR. 


^ 


I; 


t-; 


I 


u 

i3  I 


t 


give  you  about  the  right  number  of  Canadian  French  quali- 
fied for  voting.  Here  are  the  figures  I  have  obtained  from 
men  who,  by  their  social  position  in  the  following  cities,  were 
enabled  to  give  me  exact  ones :  Manchester,  225 ;  Nashua, 
200 ;  Claremont,  45 ;  Great  Falls,  40 ;  Salmon  Falls,  20  ;  Con- 
cord, 50  ;  Fisherville,  55 ;  Franklin,  40 ;  Lebanon,  60 ;  Hook- 
sett,  8 ;  and,  to  the  best  of  my  knowledge,  we  would  be  able 
to  reach  200  more  in  the  small  places  throughout  New  Hamp- 
shire ;  that  is,  933  voters  in  New  Hampshire.  The  nearest 
we  can  get  at  the  small  places,  we  are  inclined  to  say  that 
there  are  pretty  near  35,000  French  people  in  New  Hamp- 
shire. 

Now  I  want  to  pass  these  figures  to  my  partner,  because 
he  can  explain  better  than  I  can  in  English.  So,  if  you 
please,  he  will  make  some  remarks  about  the  figures  of  the 
French  who  come  here,  and  get  some  money,  and  go  back  to 
Canada. 

Mr.  F.  C.  MiviLLE,  of  Manchester,  N.H.,  then  said :  I  must 
remark,  first,  that  our  proportion  of  naturalized  citizens  is 
rather  small  for  the  population  we  have  in  Manchester,  but 
two  years  ago  we  formed  what  we  call  a  naturalization  club. 
I  speak  of  that  because  it  is  of  a  great  deal  of  importance  in 
this  question.  During  the  two  years,  about  200  have  been 
naturalized,  and  we  expect  that  in  another  year  or  two  the 
average  will  be  200  more  per  annum.  We  expect  this  in- 
crease because  no  serious  thought  had  been  given  to  the  sub- 
ject till  we  found  that  the  smaller  places  had  gone  ahead  of 
us, — Winooski  Falls,  Vt.,  for  example,  where  they  have  300 
French  voters  in  a  population  of  less  than  4,000,  and  have 
elected  a  representative  to  the  legislature  who  is  a  French 
Canadian.  Five  years  ago  another  French  Canadian  was 
elected  to  the  same  ofiice. 

Wo  have  two  French  papers ;  and  we  have  also  had  two 
dry  goods  stores  opened  in  the  last  two  years,  owned  by  quite 
heavy  firms ;  and  other  stores  are  opening  all  the  time.  In 
reference  to  the  remark  made  in  the  last  report,  that  the 
French  did  not  spend  much  money,  I  must  say  that  the 
French,  according  to  my  observation  —  I  have  lived  in  Man- 
chester ten  years  —  and,  according  to  the  reports  of  the  dry 
goods  merchants,  our  French  Canadian  population  has  spent 
more  money,  and  used  more  domestic  goods,  than  any  other 


THE  CANADIAN  FRENCH. 


71 


class  of  people.  The  rich  class  of  American  people  will  buy 
more  to  a  certain  extent,  and  pay  more,  but  will  buy  more 
foreign  goo'^s;  therefore  we  give  more  benefit  to  the  country 
because  we  use  altogether  American  goods,  I  mean  domestic 
goods.  I  don't  believe  this  accusation  in  the  report  is  per- 
fectly true.  The  entire  French  population  of  New  Hamp- 
shire is  believed  to  be  35,000. 

Now,  let  us  make  a  comparison  between  the  money  that 
is  taken  back  to  Canada  by  Canadians  who  return  and  the 
money  brought  into  the  United  States  by  French  immigra- 
tion. Let  us  say  that  in  Manchester  twenty  French  families 
per  year  return  to  Canada  having  -$1,000  each  in  their  pos- 
session. Then  think  of  the  French  population  of  9,000  and 
what  they  spend,  and  of  course  they  must  expend  a  great 
deal  more  than  820,000  in  a  year.  If  they  take  away  only 
$1,000  each,  it  makes  $20,000  a  year.  The  most  that  any 
Canadian  takes  is  about  $1,000.  I  think  it  is  below  that 
figure.  I  don't  believe  it  will  average  that.  Now,  when  a 
man  goes  back  to  Canada  with  $2,000,  he  will  generally  leave 
children  enough  to  benefit  the  States  more  than  that  amount 
during  the  ten  years  following  his  departure.  I  don't  believe 
in  the  idea  of  trying  to  check  immigration  when  all  other 
countries  are  trying  to  aid  it.  I  think  the  American  people 
should  try,  instead  of  discouraging  and  slandering  the  French 
Canadians,  to  encourage  them  in  order  to  make  them  a  part 
of  the  country.  I  think  we  have  quite  a  good  average  of 
brain  among  the  French  people,  if  they  were  only  encour- 
aged to  cultivate  it  a  little  more. 

Now,  let  us  examine  the  reports  of  the  agents  of  the  rail- 
road companies.  They  consider  that  there  is  not  less  than 
$35,000  spent  by  the  Canadian  French  in  excureions  to 
Canada  from  the  city  of  Manchester  alone. 

Take  another  comparison.  Suppose  the  French  Canadians 
arrive  in  this  country  with  $2  each,  the  600,000  Canadians 
in  the  United  States  will  have  brought  altogether  $1,200,000. 
Now,  put  the  number  of  Canadians  who  have  returned  to 
Canada  during  the  last  ten  years  from  the  United  States  at 
25,000  (the  maximum),  each  person  taking  $25,  and  you  will 
immediately  conclude  that  the  Canadian  French  have  left 
some  money  in  this  country,  since  they  brought  $1,200,000, 
and  those  who  returned  took  $625,000  only. 


f\ 


V2  STATISTICS  OF   LABOR. 

We  must  say,  before  concluding,  that  for  the  last  fifteen 
years  that  we  have  been  living  in  this  country,  we  never 
have  known  that  the  Canadian  French  were  an  obstacle  to 
the  ten-hour  law.  I  am  sure  that  they  are  not.  I  have  con- 
sulted many  of  them  before  I  came  here,  although  all  the 
notice  I  had  was  one  day.  I  could  have  had  many  witnesses 
here  if  I  had  had  time,  who  wouM  testify  —  bank  men  and 
merchants  of  all  classes  —  as  to  moral  character  ;  but  I  may 
say  for  the  French  in  our  city  that  they  are  very  much  like 
those  of  Nashua  in  morality,  as  it  is  only  a  few  miles  distant. 

Mr.  Joseph  Bouvieb,  of  Woonsocket,  R.I.,  then  appeared 
in  behalf  of  the  French. 

Q.  (By  Mr.  Dubuque.)  You  are  a  councilman  of  the 
town  of  Woonsocket,  Rhode  Island  ? 

A.    Yes,  sir. 

Q.    How  long  have  you  lived  in  Rhode  Island  ? 

A.    I  have  lived  in  Rhode  Island  for  nineteen  years. 

Q.    What  is  your  business  ? 

A.    I  am  a  grocer. 

Q,    You  also  keep  a  drug  store,  1  believe? 

A.    Yes,  sir. 

Q.  Now,  what  i^  the  inclination  of  the  French  people  rel- 
ative to  naturalization :  what  is  their  disposition,  their  feeling 
about  it  ? 

A,  As  you  all  kiow,  in  Rhode  Island  the  property  qual- 
ification is  quite  an  obstacle  to  the  naturalization  of  our 
people ;  that  puts  them  back  considerably  all  through  the 
State,  but  as  soon  as  they  get  enough  property  they  are  very 
ready  and  willing  to  become  citizens  of  the  United  States. 

Q.  (By  Mr.  Wright.)  How  much  is  that  property 
qualification  ? 

A.    It  is  $134. 

Q.  (By  Mr.  Dubuque.)  Do  you  know  a  French  Cana- 
dian in  Woonsocket,  who  owns  real  estate,  who  is  not  a  nat- 
uralized American  citizen  ? 

A.  There  are  a  few  of  the  older  men  who  own  real  estate 
and  have  not  become  citizens  of  the  United  States,  being  so 
old  that  they  did  not  care. 

Q.    Can  they  speak  English  ? 

A.  They  cannot  speak  nor  read  English;  that  is  the 
great  objection.    We  cannot  make  them  citizens  on  that 


Mi 


THE  CANADIAN  FRENCH. 


78 


account;  they  are  too  old  to  begin  the  study  of  the  lan- 
guage. 

Q.  Now,  as  to  their  disposition  about  the  schools,  sending 
their  children  to  school ;  I  believe  you  have  a  church  there 
in  Woonsocket? 

A.  We  have  just  dedicated  a  church  that  cost  the  citizens 
of  Woonsocket  over  $80,000,  the  church  property ;  that  is  a 
great  deal  of  sacrifice,  but  we  always  find  them  ready  and 
very  willing  to  spend  money  for  that  purpose,  because  the 
most  of  our  people  come  there  to  stay,  come  there  to  live. 

Q.  Whether  or  not  you  have  occasion  to  come  in  contact 
with  the  manufacturers  of  Woonsocket,  and  speak  with  them 
as  to  the  French  help,  as  to  their  opinion  or  feeling  about 
them? 

A.  I  heard  with  interest  the  report  of  the  citizens  of 
Marlborough ;  I  think  they  have  done  it  very  properly.  I 
wish  I  had  thought  any  thing  about  it,  I  should  have  brought 
a  good  many  of  our  manufacturers  to  give  you  the  proofs,  — 
I  should  have  been  much  pleased  to  do  so. 

Mr.  Wright.  You  can  send  them  to  us:  we  should  be 
very  glad  to  receive  them.  And  I  would  say  to  any  of  the 
gentlemen  that  they  may  have  the  same  privilege  to  send 
any  thing  from  any  of  their  towns. 

Mr.  BouviER.  I  see  that  the  gentlemen  from  Marlbor- 
ough have  represented  their  town  in  just  the  right  way, 
because  they  brought  the  citizens  to  furnish  the  proof  them- 
selves. If  I  had  thought,  our  town  would  have  done  the 
same  thing  with  a  great  deal  of  pleasure,  for  I  very  often 
meet  them,  and  they  always  tell  me  they  had  rather  have  the 
French  help  than  any  other  nation. 

Q.  (By  Mr.  Dubuque.)  Now,  Mr.  Bouvie:-,  I  believe  in 
your  business  you  are  also  ticket  agent,  sell  tickets  from 
Woonsocket  to  Canada  ? 

A.     Yes,  sir. 

Q.  Can  you  tell  us  what  is  the  disposition  of  the  French 
people  about  going  back  to  Canada  to  live  ? 

A.  We  don't  have  many  that  go  back,  and  those  that  do 
go  we  most  always  see  them  back  here  again. 

Q.  Whether  the  French  population  of  Woonsocket  has 
decreased  dunng  the  last  ten  years  ? 

A.  It  has  increased  very  largely ;  it  is  now  between  6,500 
and  7,000. 

10 


71 


STATISTICS   OF  LABOR. 


ri 


Q.  Whether  tlie  majority  of  the  resideuts  who  lived  there 
ten  years  ago  are  still  there  now  ? 

A.  The  majority  are  there ;  we  have  quite  a  good  many 
becoming  citizens  from  ])ii*th  now ;  they  are  beginning  now 
to  become  citizens  by  birth  Woonsocket  is  a  place  where 
the  French  began  to  come  some  twenty  odd  years  ago. 

Q.  I  believe  you  have  a  grocery  store  also  in  Manville, 
R.I.? 

A.     Yes,  sir. 

Q.    There  are  some  French  people  there,  are  there  not  ? 

A.  Yes,  sir ;  there  are  over  2,000  people  there ;  more  than 
half  the  population  is  French. 

Q.  What  is  the  disposition  of  the  French  people  of  Man- 
ville, whether  it  is  different  from  that  of  the  people  of  Woon- 
socket about  going  back  to  Canada  ? 

A.  They  are  about  the  same  all  through.  There  are  not 
so  many  there  who  are  proprietors ;  there  are  not  so  many 
voters  in  proportion  to  the  popuh  tn  in  Manville  as  there 
are  in  Woonsocket. 

Q.  Now,  about  the  schools,  —  what  is  the  disposition  of 
the  French  people  about  the  schools,  whether  public  or 
private  ? 

A.  In  Woonsocket  we  have  five  French  schools  supported 
by  the  French  people,  besides  the  report  we  have  got  to  make 
about  tlic  public  schools  where  the  French  children  go,  also. 
There  are  about  450  children  going  to  the  French  schools, 
and  there  are  about  150  going  to  the  public  schools,  the  Eng- 
lish schools. 

Q.  Whether  or  not  the  English  language  is  taught  in 
these  French  schools  ? 

A.  Yes,  sir ;  the  children  all  talk  English,  —  both  French 
and  English. 

Q.  The  children  that  go  to  the  French  schools  go  there 
to  learn  French  ? 

A.  They  go  there  to  learn  French,  but  they  talk  English 
a  good  deal,  I  suppose,  and  talk  French,  also.  We  have  in 
Woonsocket  two  justices  of  the  peace  and  a  councilman 
elected  by  the  American  people,  I  should  say.  They  were 
elected  by  the  Republican  party;  that  is  the  reason  I  say 
they  were  elected  by  the  American  people.  You  can  see  by 
that  what  they  think  of  them.    They  vould  put  them  aside, 


THE  CANADIAN  FRENCH.  76 

I  think,  if  what  was  published  about  them  in  the  report  was 
true.  We  have  a  police  officer,  wo  have  a  constable,  and  we 
have  three  doctors,  regular  graduate  physicians,  and  if  any 
of  the  American  doctors  have  to  call  in  anybody  to  consult, 
nine  cases  out  of  ten  they  will  call  on  one  or  the  other  of 
the  French  doctors.  We  have  many  butchers  and  grocers, 
and  there  is  hardly  u  store  started  there,  but  what  they 
must  have  a  French  speaking  clerk,  or  eNe  they  can't  do 
hardly  lany  business.  The  population  there  is  about  16,000, 
I  believe,  by  the  last  census,  and  of  that  number  pretty  near 
7,000  are  French,  so  you  can  see  what  the  wants  of  the 
French  speaking  people  are.  The  biggest  crime  we  can 
accuse  the  French  people  of  is  that  they  can't  all  talk  Eng- 
lish If  they  could,  they  would  be  all  right ;  they  would  be 
on  an  equality  with  the  other  nationalities. 

Mr.  J.  M.  AuTHiER,  of  Cohoes,  N.Y.,  editor  of  "  La  Nou- 
velle  Patrie,"  offered  the  following  statistics :  — 

COHOES,  N.Y. 

Population 19,000 

French  Canadians 0,000 

French  Canadian  real  estate  owners 176 

Value  of  real  estate  owned  by  French  Canadians  (church  and 

school  property  included) $477,000 

Children  (French  Canadian)  in  public  schools  ....  300 

Attending  French  schools 044 

French  Canadians  naturalized 800 

Number  who  have      jlared  their  intention  to  become  natural- 
ized                           65 

Number  holding  luunicipal  office 7 

Number  in  the  liberal  professions 8 

Merchants 40 

Bakers 2 

Butchers 8 

Clerks 20 

Churches 1 

Societies,  literary  associations,  etc 6 

The  French  Canadians  have   a  large   amount  of  money 
depo  ited  in  the  Savings  Institution  at  Cohoes. 

Troy,  N.Y. 

Population 56,873 

French  Canadians 8,992 


m 


76 


STATISTICS   OF  LABOR. 


^i 


ii 


Fronoh  Canadian  real  estate  owners  . 
Vnliio  of  real  <>8tnte  owned  by  French  CanadianH 
Cliildr^     'French  Canadian)  attending  Hohool    . 
Number  of  French  HchooU         .... 
Number  of  French  Cr.nadiaiiH  naturalized  (1886) 
Number  of  French  CanadiauH  naturalized  (1880) 
Number  of  professional  men  and  merchants 


1«7 

.  |A82,628 

608 

2 

293 

484 

06 


A  French  Canadian  is  also  the  general  passenger  ticket 
agent  of  the  Troy  and  Boston  Railroad  Company.  The 
French  Canadians  of  Troy  have  built  a  splendid  church  at  a 
cost  of  $56,620,  and  a  new  one  is  now  being  erected,  which 
will  cost,  when  completed,  the  handsome  amount  of  $30,000. 

[Mr.  Authier  filed  a  statement  to  the  effect  that  the  French 
Canadians  are,  with  very  few  exceptions,  honest,  peace- 
ful, and  industrious  citizens;  they  are  ambitiouK  to  secure 
homes  among  us,  and  some  of  the  most  attractive  and  com- 
fortable residences  in  Cohoes  are  ow|»ed  by  them.  The 
majority  of  those  who  have  settled  or  intend  to  settle  per- 
manently in  the  place  have  become  naturalized,  and  vote  at 
every  election  for  their  party.  Their  children  attend  public 
schools,  and  they  support  at  their  own  expense  four  French 
schools.  The  standing  of  their  children  as  to  ability  and 
scholarship  is  fully  up  to  the  average  of  other  nationalities. 
As  far  as  their  modes  of  amusement  are  concerned,  their 
frequent  dramatic  representations  and  picnics,  their  annual 
balls,  and  the  recent  establishment  of  a  literary  association, 
are  sufficient  evidence  that  they  can  also,  in  that  respect, 
compare  favorably  with  other  nationalities. 

This  was  signed  by  William  E.  Thorn,  mayor  of  Cohoes ; 
W.  E.  Thorn,  president,  and  D.  J.  Johnson,  superintendent. 
Harmony  Mills ;  Le  Roy  &  Lamb,  Globe  Knitting  Mill ;  H. 
8.  Bogue,  Riverside  Mill ;  Gregorys  &  Hiller,  American  Ho- 
siery Mill ;  William  Nuttall  &  Co.,  Empire  Knitting  Mills ; 
North  &  Doyle,  Anchor  Hosiery  Mills ;  John  Wakeman  ; 
John  V.  S.  Lansing,  treasurer  Troy  Manufacturing  Com- 
pany ;  Chadwick  Company ;  Ontario  Knitting  Mill ;  and  J. 
H.  Parsons  &  Co.,  manufacturers  of  knit  goods,  —  all  of 
Cohoes,  N.Y. 

The  latter  firm  says,  — 

"  We  do  not  sign  as  advocating  ten  hours,  as  few  of  our  people  work 
that  now,  and  it  is  unnecessary;  but  we  do  it  in  justice  to  this  valuable 
portion  of  our  community."] 


THE  CANADIAN   FRENCH. 


77 


Mr.  J.  E.  Marikr,  of  Lawrence,  Mass.,  then  sjiid :  — 
Mr.  Chairman,  although  my  friend  Mr.  Gagnon  ha«  niado  a 
very  elaborate  report  of  the  situation  of  our  French  Canadians 
in  the  State  of  Massachusetts,  I  would  indulj^e  upon  your 
patience  to  give  you  as  detailed  a  report  as  possible  of  Law- 
rence, which  is  one  of  the  very  uiiportant  centres  of  the  State. 
And  accordingly  I  have  set  down  a  few  figures  here  to  give 
you  an  idea  of  the  position  of  our  French  Canadians  there. 
The  population  of  Lawrence  is  39,178.  Out  of  that  the 
French  population  is  4,600.  We  possess  one  church  school, 
which  contains  860  pupils.  In  the  public  schools  there  are 
8,978  scholars,  of  whom  160  are  French.  The  number  ot  our 
owners  of  real  estate  are  88,  representing  a  value  of  )?115,000. 
The  number  of  our  merchants  are  ten  ;  bakers  and  those  in 
other  business  number  80.  We  have  two  physicians ;  we  have 
also  two  apothecaries,  one  dramatic  club,  one  brass  band,  two 
benevolent  societies,  one  of  which  represents  a  capital  in 
personal  property  of  about  18,000.  Amongst  our  merchants, 
I  must  remark,  we  have  a  grocer  who  represents  a  business 
of  about  $100,000  a  year  so  far  as  retail  business  is  concerned, 
which  is  a  very  important  item,  and  the  others  are  compara- 
tively successful  in  their  business.  The  Canadians  naturalized 
amount  to  about  130,  and  the  declarations  of  intentions  are 
140.  Taking  the  report  of  the  clerk  of  the  police  court 
dating  from  October,  1880,  to  October,  1881,  I  find  the 
following:  1,800  criminals,  of  whom  25  are  French,  comprising 
petty  offences  like  truancy  and  so  on. 

I  should  like  to  make  a  few  remarks  about  the  ten-hour 
system.  I  have  been  in  contact  with  many  of  our  French 
Canadians,  operatives  in  the  mills  at  Lawrence,  and  I  have 
somewhat  seen  their  disposition  on  this  subject.  They  all 
feel  favorably  to  the  ten-hour  system  in  every  respect,  and  if 
they  were  supported  by  their  comrade  operatives  they  would 
certainly  put  it  through.  I  see  last  fall  they  made  an  attempt 
to  have  it  adopted,  but,  unfortunately,  they  were  left  behind 
by  their  fellow  operatives.  Although  a  certain  movement  of 
repatriation  has  been  going  on  since  two  years,  we  have  no 
statistics  or  means  of  showing  how  great  it  is.  My  companion 
here,  who  is  the  sole  agent  for  the  Passumpsic  road  and  Ver- 
mont Central,  according  to  their  report  of  tickets  sold  to 
those  who  went  to  Canada,  it  is  comparatively  small,  as  far 


78 


STATISTICS   OF  LABOR. 


'V 


1  ;>:i 


J1 


as  those  who  have  staid  in  Canada ;  most  of  them  who  went 
to  Canada  by  excursions  or  otherwise  came  back  a  few  days 
or  a  few  weeks  afterwards. 

The  condition  of  our  French  Americans  is  very  favorable, 
and  now  we  have  a  naturalization  movement  which  has  every 
prospect  of  success,  and  I  think  will  put  our  countrymen  in 
a  better  position  for  the  future.  I  hope  my  confreres  will 
conclude  the  hearing  in  a  very  favorable  manner.  To  show 
the  spirit,  the  interest  which  our  clergy  have  towards  natural- 
ization, our  worthy  pastor,  Father  Bushee  of  Lawrence,  has 
taken  the  initiative,  and  he  is  pus!»ing  the  movement  strongly, 
a?Hl  contributing  to  it  as  mueh  as  possible,  and  I  think  it  will 
prove  a  success. 

Dr.  N.  Fontaine,  of  Spencer,  Mass.,  made  the  following 
statement :  — 

Q.  (By  Mr.  Dubuque.)  Will  you  please  state  to  the 
officers  of  the  Bureau  what  you  know  about  Canadian  im- 
migration or  repatriation  ? 

A.    There  is  not  much  of  it  done  in  Spencer. 

Q.    How  long  have  you  lived  in  Spencer  ? 

A.  For  the  last  ten  years.  When  I  went  there  the  French 
population  was  1,600,  ten  years  ago.  The  last  census  gave 
us  3,450.  Now,  as  to  immigration  and  travelling,  you  can 
say  that  it  don't  pay  over  there  to  be  a  railroad  agent.  I  was 
agent  there  for  the  Vermont  Central,  and  I  had  to  give  it  up, 
could  not  make  it  pay.  Last  year  I  was  agent,  and  I  sold 
only  ten  tickets  for  Canadians  going  to  Canada.  In  Spencer 
the  Canadians  are  building  and  settling  there.  We  have 
somewhere  about  140  real  estate  owners,  and  some  of  them 
own  from  three  to  four  houses.  The  number  of  voters  is  135, 
and  100  hnve  declared  their  intention.  The  public  schools 
are  attended  by  1,200  children,  and  of  that  number  we  have 
550.  The  whole  population  of  Spencer  being  7,460,  and  the 
French  population  not  being  half  of  it,  we  are  having  more 
than  half  of  the  scholars.  It  seems  to  me  that  that  shows 
pretty  well.  We  have  two  French  schools  and  a  French 
church.     But  all  this  you  will  see  in  the  general  report. 

Mr.  Charles  Lalime,^  of  Worcester,  Mass.,  then  said :  — 

Mr.  Chairman,  you  have  shown  so  much  patience  this  after- 
noon in  listening  to  all  these  reports,  that  I  am  induced  to 

^  Mr.  Lalime  has  beeu  a  general  agent  of  various  railroad  lines  for  the  sale 
of  tickets  from  the  United  States  to  Canada. 


THE  CANADIAN   FRENCH. 


er- 
to 

sale 


say  a  few  words  more  also,  under  the  circumstances.  I  must 
say  that  I  have  been  living  in  the  United  States  since  1869; 
from  that  date  till  1874  I  have  been  the  general  New  England 
agent  for  the  New  England  Mutual  Life  Insurance  Company, 
formerly  of  Boston,  now  of  Portland.  In  1874  I  was  ap- 
pointed the  New  England  passenger  agent  of  the  Central 
Vermont  road.  And  you  understand  that  under  the  circum- 
stances I  have  been  in  contact  continually  with  our  French 
population  all  through  New  England.  I  will  say,  gentlemen, 
that  ten  years  ago  we  heard  nothing  al)out  and  we  saw  no 
organizations  of  any  kind  among  the  French  Canadian  popu- 
lation in  the  New  England  States.  There  were  hundreds  of 
families  scattered  right  and  left,  but  there  was  no  organiza- 
tion. The  fact  is,  there  was  no  head,  no  leaders  whatever. 
When  I  look  at  that  time,  and  see  what  progress  has  been 
made,  I  cannot  but  say  that  I  see  no  other  nationality  herein 
Ncr  England  which  has  shown  so  much  progress  as  the 
French  Canadians.  Just  look  at  it,  gentlemen.  For  instance, 
I  will  mention  Worcester,  which  is  ray  home.  In  1869  we 
had  nothing  to  speak  of.  Presently  we  have  a  French  con- 
vent and  a  French  church,  the  expense  of  both  of  which  was 
over  $80,000.  Wo  have  a  benevolent  society,  called  St.  John 
the  Baptist,  numbering  very  near  600  members ;  they  have 
about  $8,000  in  the  bank,  helping  widows  and  orphans  and  one 
another.  The  fact  is,  it  is  a  bod}'  which  has  more  importance 
than  what  you  might  think.  Besides  that  we  have  a  natural- 
ization club  which  has  been  in  existence  for  the  last  two  years. 
That  has  been  progressing  and  is  progressing  rapidly  now. 
Then  we  have  also  another  club,  Montcalm,  as  we  call  it  in 
French,  with  over  a  hundred  members.  In  Worcester  we 
have  no  cotton  manufacturing,  the  same  as  what  we  find  in 
the  other  parts  of  New  England ;  it  is  more  iron  than  cotton. 
I  don't  know  if  the  French  Canadians  arc  not  the  same  in 
Worcester  as  somewhere  else,  but  I  can  assure  you  we  are 
very  far  from  being  what  we  are  represented  in  that  report. 
There  is  no  difference  in  Worcester  between  the  French  or 
the  American  cr  the  German.  We  are  all  on  an  equality. 
We  have  two  French  local  papers  in  Worcester,  one  of  which 
has  a  circulation,  if  I  am  not  mistaken,  of  about  1,400  or 
1,500.  A  great  many  of  cur  French  families  are  subscribing 
to  the  American  newspapers,  and  I  must  say  that  to-day,  no 


80 


STATISTICS   OF  LABOR. 


I 


:.'i 
1 


■r) 


'  : 


matter  into  what  family  you  go,  you  will  find  tb.at  our  chil- 
dren can  talk  French  and  English  just  the  same.  They  are 
brought  up  in  our  public  schools  talking  English,  and  at 
home  they  talk  French.  These  children,  gentlemen,  can 
talk  both  languages  equally. 

Mr.  Gagnon.  Speaking  of  French  newspapers  in  Worces- 
ter, there  is  one  that  has  a  circulation  of  3,000. 

Mr.  Lalime.  Our  population  is  stationary:  it  does  not 
move.  A  great  part  of  our  Frenchmen  are  real  estate  owners, 
and  I  must  say  that  the  railroad  ticket  sales  in  Worcester  do 
not  amount,  on  an  average,  to  $100  a  month,  out  of  a  popula- 
tion of  over  5,000.  We  stay  at  home,  we  mean  to  become 
citizens,  we  are  using  all  the  means  that  we  can  to  have  all 
get  naturalized,  and  we  do  all  that  is  in  our  power  to  place 
ourselves  on  an  equal  footing  with  the  American  population, 
and  we  are  known  to  be  so ;  we  meet  our  American  friends, 
and  there  is  no  difference  between  the  two  nationalities.  As 
for  business  men,  we  have  grocers,  —  I  don't  know  how 
many,  —  but  we  have  French  grocers  on  every  street,  and 
three  French  doctors ;  and  as  for  French  clerks,  gentlemen, 
to  sliow  what  is  the  worth  of  the  French  Canadian  popula- 
tion, we  have  them  in  every  first-class  store. 

Now,  gentlemen,  as  I  was  saying  a  minute  ago,  in  looking 
at  the  past  ten  years,  not  only  in  Worcester  but  in  Woon- 
socket,  Fall  River,  Lawrence,  Lowell,  Biddeford,  Lewiston, 
Manchestfci,  and  Nashua,  —  why,  ten  years  ago  there  was  not 
a  single  organization,  and  when  you  come  to  find  out  that  we 
now  have  our  French  schools  in  all  these  places,  that  we 
have  our  business  houses  everywhere,  it  seems  to  me  that  we 
have  been  progressing,  and  that  we  ought  not  to  be  compared 
with  the  Chinese  of  the  Fast.  That  expression,  gentlemen, 
has  hurt  me  somewhat,  and  I  must  say  that  I  was  one  of  the 
first  in  our  city  to  come  up  and  say,  we  must  meet  Mr. 
Wright,  and  show  him  that  we  are  a  white  people,  and  that 
we  have  been  well  brought  up,  that  is,  as  well  as  American 
gentlemen  are  brought  up.  Let  us  go  and  meet  Mr.  Wright, 
and  show  him  that  here,  though  we  are  not  in  what  we 
might  call  our  mother  country,  we  have  made  the  United 
States  our  second  mother  country.  If  sometimes  we  speak 
of  Canada,  do  not  forget  that  we  have  just  arrived  here  in 
the  New  England  States.    Twelve  years  ago  three-fourths 


THE   CANADIAN   FRENCH. 


81 


of  us  had  not  arrived.  We  are  only  seven  or  eight  hours'  ride 
from  our  friends  in  the  mother  countrv,  at  home  where  we 
eanie  from.  We  are  situated  quite  difterently  from  what  the 
German  and  the  Irish  inmiigrants  are.  They  have  come  from 
across  the  ocean.  We  can  go  to  Mt)ntreal  for  four  dollars, 
and  three  or  four  weeks  ago  we  could  go  to  Montreal  for  two 
dollars.  There  we  have  left  friends,  we  have  left  many  of  our 
relatives,  and  there  is  nothing  strange  if  we  go  there  once  in  a 
while  to  meet  them.  Of  course  you  will  hear  everywhere,  in 
all  places,  Frenchmen  saying  they  will  return  to  Canada,  but 
you  must  not  forget  that  experience  shows  »is  that  only  a  few 
will  go  there  to  stay.  Every  one  of  our  fathers  and  mothers 
who  came  here  from  Canada  always  came  here  to  stay  two 
or  three  years.  The  children  take  the  customs  of  New  Eng- 
land, of  the  United  States,  and  after  three  or  four  years'  resi- 
dencte  when  the  father  says,  we  will  go  home,  the  children 
say,  we  will  not.  (Jentlemen,  I  could  give  you  lots  and  lots 
of  examples  where  father  and  mother  have  gone  back  to 
Canada,  but  the  children  are  here.  They  have  settled,  they 
are  American  citizens,  and  they  will  never  go  back  to 
Canada.  Immigration  has  a  good  deal  to  do  with  the  rail- 
road business.  Let  me  state  to  you  that  the  monthly 
railroad  receipts  of  ticket  sales  from  here  to  Canada  for  one 
line,  and  that  is  the  one  I  represent,  the  Vermont  Central, 
are  about  $9,000.  These  are  the  sales  to  the  French  popula- 
tion from  New  England  to  Canada.  That  amount  may  seem 
to  be  quite  large,  but  let  me  tell  you  that  our  sales  to  return 
average  at  least  •Vl8,000  to  -"^20,000  a  month,  that  is,  from 
Canada  to  the  New  England  StatCN.  The  reason  also,  gentle- 
men, why  '  "  sales  are  so  high,  when  I  speak  of  f  9,000 
from  here  to  l.;anada,  is  that  through  two  montlis  the  railroad 
men  always  make  excursion  rates.  We  can  go  to  Canada  for 
almost  nothing,  —  as  I  was  saying,  we  have  been  to  Canada 
during  two  months  for  two  dollars.  There  is  nothing 
strange,  then,  if  the  Canadians  will  travel  and  will  go  there. 
More  than  one-third  of  the  business  is  done  by  people  buying 
tickets  here  and  sending  them  to  Canada.  You  take  the 
French  Canadian  centres,  Salem,  for  instance,  —  the  popula- 
tion in  Salem  comes  from  Rimouski,  about  a  hundred  and 
twenty  miles  below  Quebec.  They  all  come  from  that  neigh- 
borhood. What  has  brought  that  jiopulation  to  Salem  ?  I 
11 


98 


STATISTICS   OF   LABOR. 


I  IF 

If 

-a 


k 


f4 


:■ 


i 


I*'.  "I 


I 


fA 


■■[- 


3? 

t 


should  say  that  two  men  in  Salem  have  clone  all  the  busi- 
ness. They  came  here  and  settled,  and  every  month  they 
send  for  five,  six,  ten,  fifteen  families,  and  we  se^  jhem  com- 
ing. Some  will  go  back,  but  three-fourths  of  them  remain 
here.  And  it  is  just  the  same  in  other  places.  A  gentleman 
comes  and  settles  in  a  certain  place,  and  he  will  get  so  many 
others  to  come  there ;  that  is  the  way  it  is  done,  and  we  are 
selling  tickets  that  way  all  the  time. 

Mr.  GuiLLET.  The  other  month  I  went  to  Fall  River,  and 
on  the  street  a  young  man  came  to  me  and  sliook  hands,  and 
said,  "  Don't  you  recognize  me?"  I  said,  "  No."  —  "  Well," 
he  says,  "I  am  such  a  one."  It  remindcil  nic  that  nine  years 
ago  when  I  came  to  Fall  River  I  made  the  acquaintance  of  a 
family  there,  and  this  family  was  going  back  to  Canada  next 
spring,  they  said.  I  said  to  the  young  man,  "  Aren't  you 
going  back  to  Canada?"  He  said  "  No."  —  "  Why,"  said  I, 
"  when  I  was  here  you  said  you  were  going  back  next  spring." 
He  said,  "  We  have  been  going  back  to  Canada  next  spring 
for  nine  years,  but  we  are  settled  here,  and  are  going  to 
stick."  And  that  is  what  a  great  many  do.  About  this 
epithet,  "  Chinese  of  the  East,"  our  F'rench  operatives  in 
the  mills  at  Lowell  have  been  opposed  by  the  other  help 
and  abused  on  account  of  this  name.  For  two  three 
weeks  they  were  on  the  fire  for  the  people  calling  chem 
"  Chinese."  They  heard  nothing  but  "  Chinese "  all  the 
time.  Some  had  to  lose  their  places,  and  go  off;  they  could 
not  stand  it.  But  now  it  is  a  good  deal  better.  After  we 
had  indignation  meetings  it  was  a  little  better.  The  ordinary 
help  don't  know  the  meaning  of  it,  but  they  took  advantage 
of  this  report  to  abuse  our  friends  very  much  with  this 
epithet. 

Mr.  L'Herault  (of  Fall  River.)  It  needs  no  argument  to 
prove  what  our  friend  from  Worcester  has  said,  because  we 
can  all  look  back  ten  or  fifteen  years.  Did  we  then  have  any 
French  in  Boston  or  vicinity?  Very,  very  few,  no  real 
e.^tate  owners.  To-day  we  can  count  the  French  Canadians 
in  New  England  by  thousands,  and  many  of  them  are  real 
(jstate  owners.  Now,  in  the  report  it  is  said  that  vctinr*. 
with  all  that  it  implies,  we  care  nothing  about ;  that  .:i'«  doa't 
get  naturalized.  Mr.  Chief,  there  is  one  thing,  if  thwy  huve 
not  been  getting  naturalized  as  fast  as  some  otn.  .-s  have  bten, 


y 


THE  CANADIAN    FRENCH. 


88 


instfiad  of  being  a  stigma  on  the  nation  It  is  an  honor  to 
them.  It  is  because  they  understand  too  well,  they  have 
been  too  well  brought  up,  and  know  too  well  the  meaning  of 
an  oath,  to  become  naturalized  without  having  the  right  so 
to  do.  Others  get  naturalized  a  great  deal  faster,  as  we  know. 
A  great  many  men  who  landed  in  New  York  last  year  will 
vote  this,  although  they  had  not  seen  the  country  before. 
Then  they  will  say,  "Why  don't  the  French  get  naturalized?" 
Mr.  Chief,  it  is  because  the  men  who  came  here  were  all  over 
the  age  of  eighteen  years,  with  few  exceptions.  They  were 
educated  in  French,  they  couid  speak  French,  but  they  could 
not  speak  English.  They  may  in  time  become  naturalized,  but 
when  a  man  has  reached  twenty-five  or  thirty  or  forty  years 
of  age,  and  has  never  learned  but  one  language,  he  can  hardly 
learn  another.  I  will  ask  you,  if  you  were  placed  in  a  country 
where  you  had  to  learn  to  read  and  write  French  to  be  al- 
lowed to  vote,  whether  there  would  be  a  great  many  of  you 
who  would  vote  ?  I  say  that  the  French,  considering  the  dif- 
ference in  the  language,  are  dohig  marvellously  well.  They 
have  done  better  than  the  American  citizens  could  fairly  ex- 
pect them  to  do.  The  assertions  in  the  report  were  made  by 
interested  parties,  trying  to  injure  the  French  people  of  this 
Commonwealth.  I  do  not  blame  the  Chief  in  parti oular.  He 
had  to  rely  on  agents,  and  these  agents  probably  have  to 
rely  on  others  who  make  statensents  ;  but  I  do  blame  him  in 
one  sense  for  having  written  this  in  this  way,  as  this  seems 
to  be  a  conclusion  of  what  they  have  heard.  "  With  a  few 
exceptions  the  French  Canadians  are  the  Chinese  of  the 
East."  The  gentlemen  of  the  Bureau  seem  to  be  well  enough 
posted,  and  it  seems  to  me  that  a  siinple  glance  over  the  field 
would  have  shown  them  different  from  that.  Why,  it  is  easy 
to  see  I  We  have  them  right  here  among  us,  j^ou  have  them 
living  right  beside  you.  Are  they  not  the  same  as  other 
citizens  ?  You  see  them  in  Lowell,  Lawrence,  Fall  River., 
Manchester,  and  Worcester.  They  occupy  some  of  the  high- 
est positions,  that  i;5,  considering  the  time  they  have  lived 
here.  In  our  reports,  some  of  the  gentlemen  have  mentioned 
second  hands  and  mechanics  ;  they  ai-e  too  many  to  enumer- 
ate. For  a  Frenchman  to  be  a  second  hand  is  a  very  ordi- 
nary thing  in  Fall  River,  and  seveiai  are  overseers.  The 
reasons  I  have  stated  in  regard  to  naturalization  are  the  only 


84 


STATISTICS   OF  LABOR. 


h:. 


'  t. 


m 


•  i'.\ . 


ones,  as  I  thiak  my  friends  will  bear  me  out  in  sayi  ^',  that 
prevent  them  being  naturalized.  But  you  see  the  ut  ^  nrop 
is  coming  in,  and,  be  it  said  with  pride,  the  French  are  very 
prolific.  The  young  people  are  taking  out  their  papers, 
and  getting  initiated  into  the  manners,  customs,  and  institu- 
tions of  this  country.  They  take  an  interest  in  politics. 
Fifteen  years  ago  we  could  not  get  a  French  paper  printed 
in  New  England  ;  to-day  we  have  several,  and  they  are  well 
patronized.  1  think  that  this  hearing,  on  the  whole,  Mr. 
Chief,  will  prove  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  Bureau  that  the 
statements  made  In  the  report  were  erroneous.  % 

Mr.  Dubuque  (in  closing  for  the  French.)  Now,  gentle- 
men of  the  Bureau,  I  think  the  hearing  is  about  closed.  We 
have  nothing  further  to  present.  I  feel  before  closing,  how- 
ever, that  it  is  my  duty  for  the  delegates  who  are  here  pres- 
ent, to  tender  to  this  Bureau  our  grateful  thanks  for  having 
given  us  this  opportunity  to  be  heanV,  as  well  as  for  the  kind 
attention  that  you  have  shown  throucrhout  the  whole  hearing, 
and  the  disposition  to  do  justice  on  th  subject  matter  which 
is  now  before  us.  Of  course,  as  we  said  in  the  beginning, 
this  hearing  has  been  informal,  but  however  informal  it  may 
have  been,  I  think  we  have  proved  to  your  satisfaction,  that 
the  statements  which  have  been  brought  to  this  Bureau  by 
either  interested  or  prejudiced  parties  are  entirely  erroneous. 
Were  it  necessary  to  corroborate  \/hat  ve  have  stated  here 
we  could  furnish  the  affidavits  of  manufacturers  and  considera- 
ble more  evidence  which  would  only  be  cumulative  and  could 
not  prove  any  more  than  we  have  proved  now.  1  would  re- 
fer the  honorable  gentlemen  of  this  Board  to  a  very  high 
authority  in  this  Commonwealth,  Mr.  Goodell,  who  edits  the 
Province  Laws  in  Massachusetts,  who  has  been  kind  enough 
to  come  up  here  and  say  to  me  that  ^ny  information  that  the 
Bureau  wanted  to  get  from  him  in  regard  to  the  French  peo- 
ple of  Salem,  he  would  kindly  give  it  to  them.  He  said  he  is 
president  of  a  railroad  compan}^  which  employs  a  hundred 
French  people,  and  that  as  a  whole  he  has  found  them  better 
than  any  other  class  of  workmen.  I  will  not  detain  you 
further  to  tell  you  what  he  said  to  me  about  them,  but  I  will 
refer  you  to  him,  and  that  is  enough. 

But  before  I  close,  I  would  say  that  I  think  we  have 
proved  by  overwhelming  evidence  that  the  statements  con- 


THE   CANADIAN   FRENCH. 


85 


1 


tained  in  this  report  are  grouiulless.  We  have  not  proved 
that  tliey  are  malicions,  but  we  deduce  from  the  fact  tliat 
they  are  false,  that  they  have  been  presented  to  you  from  a 
malicious  spirit  or  in  a  spirit  which  is  just  as  sordid  and 
despicable,  —  undoubtedly  by  interested  parties.  Now,  of 
course,  the  greatest  objection  which  wo  have  against  the 
report  is  this,  gentlemen  of  this  Bureau,  that  it  singles  out 
the  French  people  in  preference  to  the  Irish  or  the  English. 
What  is  contained  on  page  469  and  page  470  of  this  report, 
gentlemen  of  this  Bureau,  could  be  said  of  the  English  ele- 
ment, could  be  said  of  the  Irish  element,  could  be  said  of  the 
Portuguese  element,  could  be  said  of  all  the  elements  of  so- 
ciety, even  of  the  native  Americans,  —  some  of  them.  What 
you  have  said  here  might  apply  to  a  very  few  exceptions,  but 
it  does  not  apply  to  the  French  people  as  a  whole.  It  does 
not  ap{)ly  to  the  majority  of  the  French  people,  the  vast  ma- 
joritj'  of  them.  It  does  not  apply  to  the  men  Avho  have  come 
before  you,  and  it  does  not  apply,  I  say,  to  tiie  vast  majority 
of  the  French  people  not  only  of  Massachusetts,  but  of  New 
England.  I  think  you  are  satisfied  now,  after  this  hearing, 
gentlemen,  that  all  we  want  here  to-day,  all  we  ask,  is  simple 
justice.  We  think  we  have  had  it,  and  we  thank  you  for 
granting  us  an  impartial  hearing.  We  think  that  you  have 
shown  a  disposition  to  be  fair,  and  to  give  us  what  is  called  in 
common  parlance  "fair  i>lay,"  and  that  is  all  wc  asked,  gentle- 
men, and  for  that  we  arc  thankful  to  you. 

But  another  great  objection  we  had  against  this  report  was 
this.  We  would  not  have  been  so  much  touched  by  the  re- 
port if  it  had  been  contained  simply  in  a  newspaper,  because 
there  we  could  answer  it.  If  it  had  been  in  "The  Boston 
Herald,"  if  it  had  been  in  "  Tiie  Boston  Journal,"  or  in  any 
of  the  great  newspapers  of  this  country,  we  could  have  an- 
swered it.  But  here  how  could  we  answer  it?  Here  is  a 
document  which  will  remain  forever,  as  long  as  the  State 
House  stands,  —  in  the  archives  of  this  Commonwealth.  It 
will  be  out  of  this  material,  as  I  said  in  the  beginning,  that 
the  history  of  the  French  people  or  of  this  Commonwealth 
will  be  written.  When  the  social  student  will  come  here  to 
study  the  social  progress  of  the  people,  of  this  Common- 
wealth, and  of  the  New  England  States,  he  will  come  to  this 
source  of  information,  he  will  see  these  statistics  collected. 


86 


STATISTICS   OF  LABOR. 


11 

t:: 

i', 
'!    ; 


here,  and,  moreover,  he  will  see  that  no  other  nationality  is 
mentioned  here  but  the  French  Canadians.  Pie  will  see  that 
they  are  brought  out,  as  it  were,  as  the  great  opposition  to 
the  advancement  of  the  working  classes.  He  will  think,  at 
first,  by  reading  this,  that  they  were  a  great  obstacle  to  tbe 
social  and  mural  progress  of  the  people  of  this  Common- 
wealth. But  I  hope,  gentlemen  of  this  Bureau,  that  in  the 
next  report  there  will  be  such  an  overwhelming  refutation 
such  a  satisfactory  refutation,  based  upon  the  facts  as  we 
have  presented  them  to  you,  that,  even  if  an  injustice  has 
been  done  to  us,  justice  at  last  will  prevail. 

Mr.  WiiiGHT.  Gentlemen,  I  want  to  thank  you  most 
heartily  for  your  kind  attendance  to-day,  and  for  the  intelli- 
gence which  you  have  brought  to  bear  upon  the  question 
before  us.  I  wish  to  say  a  few  words,  however,  with  refer- 
ence to  the  report.  All  the  evidence  taken  by  the  Bureau 
was  taken  in  the  course  of  an  investigation  conducted  under 
the  law  of  the  Commonwealth.  The  statement  of  every  man 
cannot  be  given  as  a  specific  piece  of  evidence.  Every  pirty 
is  interested,  of  course,  just  as  every  party  here  to-day  is 
interested.  I  do  not  think  statements  were  made  in  malice  ; 
they  may  have  been  made  in  ignorance,  but  certainly  not  in 
malice.  The  words  "Chinese  of  the  East"  are  simply  an 
expression  used  by  economists  to-day  everywhere,  to  denote 
the  kind  of  labor  that  is  migratory.  That  is  all  I  understand 
is  meant  by  the  term  "Chinesie  "  here  as  applied  to  the  Cana- 
dians.    It  is  not  a  stigma  at  all. 

It  is  one  of  the  dearest  privileges  of  the  American  to  be 
heard.  I  am  iidt  here  in  any  judicial  capacity  whatever.  If 
I  was  I  should  have  great  difficulty  in  making  up  my  judg- 
ment. But  my  duty  is  more  allied  to  that  of  a  master  in 
chancery.  The  statements  made  to  our  agents  a  year  ago 
were  reported.  If  they  had  been  made  against  the  English 
or  the  Irish,  they  would  have  been  reported ;  and  if  you  will 
look  back  to  the  report  of  a  year  and  a  half  ago,  you  will  find 
worse  things  said  about  the  English  than  ever  were  said 
about  the  French  Canadiai.  s,  and  if  the  English  had  com- 
plained about  these  statements,  as  you  had  the  patriotism  to 
complain  about  the  statements  made  with  regard  to  the 
French  Canadians,  they  would  have  been  given  a  hearing  in 
just  this  same  way.     No  one  has  been  singled  out.    These 


THE  CANADIAN   FRENCH. 


87 


statements  were  made  to  us,  as  I  said  in  the  opening  of  this 
hearing,  and  we  had  no  otlier  duty  to  perform  than  to  report 
them.     It  is  your  privilege  to  comphiin  of  these  statements, 
it  is  your  privilege  to  protest  against  these  statements,  and  it 
is  my  bounden  duty,  as  an  honorable  man,  so  far  as  my  position 
is  concerned,  and  the  Bureau  of  Statistics  is  concerned,  to  give 
you  the  fullest  and  the  fairest  opportunity  to  he  Ik  aid.    That 
has  not  only  been  a  duty,  but  it  has  been  a  pleasure,  I  assure 
you.     The  day  has  been  exceedingly  pleasant  to  me,  because 
of  the  spirit  of  fairness  in  which  you  have  given  your  evidence, 
the  intelligence  you  have  brought  to  bear  upon  the  ques- 
tions  considered,  and   the  very  little  advantage  you   have 
taken  of  the  opportunity  to  make  me  uncomfortable ;  these 
have   all  been   very   pleasant  features  of    the   day's  work, 
I  assure  you.     As  I  told  you  in  the  beginning,  I  do  not 
blame  you  for  being  exasperated,  but  I  am  not  r'^sponsible 
for  the  statements  made  to  the  Bureau.     Now  the  (question  I 
want  to  find  out  by  my  agents  is  whether  they  were  made  in 
malice  or  not.    That  work  I  have  already  undertaken.     I 
am  quite  well  satisfied  that  the  reports  made  to  the  Bureau 
were  made  from  localities  where  the  French  Canadians  are 
Dot  organized,  where  they  are  living,  as  a  good  many  of  our 
own  Americans  are  living,  in  a  way  wiiich  you  would  not 
approve.     If  these  things  are  true,  all  I  have  got  to  d(j  is  to 
report  them  with  the  material  parts  of  the  testimony  given 
here  to-day,  with  such  a  review  of  it  as  shall  be  just  to  you ; 
and  whatever  is  just  to  you  will  be  honorable  to  the  Bureau. 
There  is  no  disposition  other  than  to  give  you  justice  and 
fair  play,  which  is  an  American  principle,  and  I  wish  to  thank 
you  heartily  for  giving  me  the  opportunity  to  show  it. 
The  hearing  then  closed. 


88 


STATISTICS  OF  LABOR. 


li! 


>.y. 


tn 


jf 


'i 


■  i , 


m 


RKflUM<5. 
The  statistics  presented  by  Messrs.  Gagnon,  AuthiiT,  and 
(lillet,  are  brouj^ht  toijother  in  tbe  t'ollowiiijj  table:  — 


Oagiion'ii.Stal- 

UUci<»2cttlei 

Mid  town*.) 

Cuho««. 

Troy. 

Lowell. 

liii.iK,  SflcHleii 
an<l  lowna. 

Total  jiopuliition 

417,877 

10,000 

56,873 

50,485 

554,135 

Caiiiuliaii  pojxilu  lOn, 

88,65a 

6,000 

3,1)02 

11,000 

109,646 

Ciiiiiuliiui  real  estate 

owners  . 

2,5ifl 

176 

167 

- 

2,850 

School  chihlren 

56,888 

- 

- 

7,293 

64,176 

Canadian  sciioolchil- 

dif'ii 

13,406 

044 

508 

1,361 

10,219 

Canadian  schools 

40 

4 

2 

— 

46 

Naturalised    Canadi- 

ans 

4,480 

800 

484 

232 

5,906 

Canadians       holding 

public  ofTicc  . 

68 

7 

- 

7 

67 

Canadian    merchants 

and       professional 

men 

540 

48 

06 

10 

703 

Canadian  tradesmen, 

2,014 

30 

205 

2,249 

But  little  need  be  .said  in  addition  to  tlie  remarks  made  at 
the  hearing.  We  have  presented  the  evidence  in  full,  except 
where  condensed  by  tlie  authors  in  the  revision  of  their  respec- 
tive otatements.  We  have  taken  pains  to  learn  if  any  malice 
existed  in  the  minds  of  the  informants  of  the  Bureau  against 
the  French,  and  are  perfectly  satisfied  that  no  malice  entered 
into  the  case;  our  informants  thought,  and  still  think,  they 
were  speaking  the  truth  generally,  but  freely  admit  that  their 
statements  were  too  sweeping.  It  is  evident,  however,  that 
some  prejudice  existed  in  their  minds,  for  they  but  echoed  tho 
impressions  existing  in  the  minds  of  the  people;  and  these 
impressions  were  the  legitimate  results  of  the  policy  and  ac- 
tions of  certain  classes  of  the  French,  as  will  be  seen,  but 
which  were  allowed  to  apply  to  the  race. 

The  reports  made  to  the  Bureau  came  from  localities  where 
the  French  Canadians  are  not  well  organized,  where  they  too 
often  live  in  away  that  subjects  them  to  severe  criticisms,  and 
where,  from  a  variety  of  causes,  they  have  been  accustomed 
to  change  their  residence  with  a  frequency  which  usually  led 
people  to  think  of  them  as  a  roving  race.     It  has  been  with 


Ji 


THE  CANADIAN   FRENCH. 


89 


them  as  witli  all  pi-oples  of  strongly  marked  characteristics: 
the  worst  and  lowest  specimens  have  been  taken  as  represen- 
tatives ol  the  race. 

Before  and  siru;e  the  hearini,'  we  have  received  a  pjreat  many 
written  and  virbal  stiitemcras  to  the  effect  that  tli»:  parts  of 
the  Twelfth  Annual  Report  relating  to  tiio  French  were  per- 
fectly true.  In  fact,  we  have  not  met  a  single  Canadian  gen- 
tleman who  has  denied  the  truth  of  the  report,  if  it  were 
made  the  exception  and  not  the  rule,  and  if  the  term  "  Chinese 
of  the  East"  be  left  out.  It  is  only  fair,  however,  to  ?<lale 
brielly  how  the  whole  question  appears  to  ii 

Ten  years  ago  but  few  French  Camidians  bad  eome  t(  our 
factory  towns.  Prior  to  that,  the  brickmaker,  the  wood- 
chopper,  and  the  border  farmer  gave  whatever  impression  the 
public  minil  received.  When  immigration  began  in  earnest, 
and  thousands  of  oi)eratives  came  over  the  line,  they  came,  as 
a  rule,  with  not  only  the  exhortation  of  the  French  Catholic 
priest  of  Canala  to  return  when  they  had  actpiired  some 
means,  but  with  their  own  promises  to  the  priest  that  they 
would  return.  The  whole  influence  of  the  Church  in  Canada 
was,  and  is,  exerted  in  favor  of  return  to  Canada.  Later  on, 
the  Canadian  government  established  paid  agencies  in  the 
United  States,  to  aid  in  returning  Canadians  to  their  old 
homes. 

This  movement  was  fostered  by  the  leading  French  Cana- 
dians living  here,  and  has  been  advocated  by  the  French 
press'  of  New  Englanci,  except  "  Le  Rdpublicain,"  even  since 
the  last  report  of  the  Bureau  was  published. 

Many,  however,  came  here  from  Canada  with  faint  or  little 
desire  to  return.  Such  settled  at  once  to  the  business  of  life, 
and  have  become  not  only  interested  in  our  institutions,  but 
have  taken  part  in  maintaining  them.  The  idea  of  the  new- 
comers being  migratory  irose  not  from  them,  but  from  the 
class  which  came  with  the  promise  and  the  determination  to 
return,  and  from  their  reiterat(!d  statements  that  they  should 
return.  And  the  great  number  who  did  actually  return  con- 
vinced many  persons  that  they  came  simply  to  gain  what  they 
could,  but  not  to  become  part  of  the  American  people. 

1  The  following  French  Canadian  papers  are  published  in  New  England  : 
Massachusetts  — lie  R^publicain,  Boston;  Le  Travailleur,  "Worcester;  Courrier 
d' Worcester,  Worcester;  L'Abeille,  Lowell;  Le  Jean  Baptiste,  Northampton. 
New  Hampshire  —  L'Eclio  des  Canadiens,  Manchester;  L'Uuiou  Nationale, 
Manchester;  Le  Bateau,  Iitanchester.  i/aine  — Le  Messager,  Lewiston. 
12 


->. 


M. 


v-^^.'-l.?^ 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


1.0  :s^  1^ 

1.1  l.-^n^ 

^=  1111,8 

11-25  i  1.4    1 1.6 


4 


k{0 


O 


A 


/ 
.V^.^^ 


IL 


^ 


V] 


/: 


'/ 


/A 


Photographic 

Sciences 

Coiporation 


23  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  14SM 

(716)872-4503 


Lrf" 


■4' 


o^ 


90 


STATISTICS   OF  LABOR. 


:t  * 


\- 


I'll 


Soon  another  influence  began  to  be  felt.  The  French  Ca- 
nadian loves  his  church,  and  is  loyal  to  it.  If  living  in  a  small 
out-of-the-way  place,  he  would  soon  remove  with  his  compa- 
triots, and  when  sufficient  numbers  had  gathered,  the  church 
was  organized,  and  became  the  central  power,  or  influence, 
The  priest  coming  from  Ciiiiada,  it  may  be  on  missionary  work, 
to  take  charge  of  the  growing  parish,  soon  found  himself  per- 
manently established  in  New  England,  and  his  natural  desire 
was  to  see  his  flock  grow  and  prosper.  Thus  repatriation 
stood  in  the  way  of  the  growth  of  the  French  Catholic  Church 
in  New  England,  and  one  or  the  other  must  be  abandoned. 
Many  Canadians  returned,  and  are  returning,  to  Canada ; 
but  they  find  themselves  more  attached  to  the  new  than  to 
the  old  ;  for,  as  Professor  Cyr  remarked  in  his  evidence, 
things  do  not  look  as  they  did  when  they  were  young.  So 
they  again  turn  their  faces  this  way,  and  seek  permanent 
abodes. 

The  efforts  of  the  Canadian  government  have  been  almost 
without  success,  and  Avith  strong  French  churches  established 
in  New  England  repatriation  is  a  failure ;  but  still  very  re- 
cently, it  has  been  loudly  advocated  in  very  many  quarters  as 
the  best  expression  of  patriotism.  The  doctrine  has  done 
much,  and  the  most,  in  fact,  towards  fixing  the  impression  in 
the  minds  of  New  England  people  that  the  French  cared  noth- 
ing whatever  for  the  welfare  of  the  country,  but  only  sought 
personal  gain  at  the  expense  of  home  industry. 

The  employers  of  labor  have  done  much  to  stimulate  French 
immigration ;  almost  without  exception,  the  mill  managers, 
whate^'er  they  have  to  say  about  the  traits  of  the  Cana- 
dians, prefer  them  in  their  mills ;  for  they  are  industrious  in 
the  extreme,  do  not  grumble  about  pay,  are  docile,  and  have 
nothing  to  do  with  labor  agitations.  While  in  these  direc- 
tions they  have  won  the  regard  of  employers,  they  have  in- 
curred the  animosity  of  labor  reformers. 

Another  source  of  the  prevailing  impression  that  the  French 
were  unfriendly  to  New  England  ideas  is  found  in  the  estab- 
lishment of  parochial  schools.  However  much  the  effort  of 
the  French  to  educate  their  children  in  these  institutions 
may  be  applauded,  the  parochial  school  will  always  excite 
hostility  on  the  part  of  the  native.  Whether  they  are  foreign 
to  our  ways,  or  inimical  to  our  institutions,  are  not  questions 


french 

>ers, 

;ana- 

>us  in 

have 

lirec- 

^e  in- 

rench 
Istab- 
rt  of 
tions 
:cite 
leign 
pions 


THE   CANADIAN   FRENCH. 


91 


for  discussion  at  this  time.  We  only  state  the  fact  that  their 
establishment  by  members  of  any  race  will  always  raise  sus- 
picion in  the  American  mind  as  to  the  sincerity  of  professions 
of  loyalty  to  pur  government  on  the  part  of  the  founders. 

The  fact  should  be  recorded  that  our  Frenjh  population 
is  being  schooled  in  our  public  and  ^heir  parochial  schools  to 
an  extent  not  realized  a  very  short  time  ago,  and  to  a  much 
greater  degree  than  the  public  is,  even  now,  aware  of. 

Besides  these  causes  there  exist  localities  of  French  popu- 
lation that  make  the  intelligent  French  Canadian  blush,  and 
that  are  disgraceful  to  the  cities  which  permit  the  prevailing 
conditions. 

The  same  might  be  said,  with  equal  truth,  of  other  races. 
These  localities  are  heard  of  more  frequently  than  those  of 
good  order  and  good  conditions. 

All  these  things  are  clearly  indicated  and  shown  by  the 
evidence  given  at  the  hearing,  and  are  fully  substantiated  by 
all  with  whom  we  have  consulted,  whether  Canadians  or 
Americans. 

With  regard  to  naturalization,  while  the  French  are  not 
naturalizing  as  rapidly  as  some  other  foreign  elements,  yet, 
considering  the  obstacle  of  language,  they  are  now  doing 
well.  The  nationality  of  our  voting  population  is  discus^'ed 
elsewhere.^  The  statistics  given  at  the  hearing  give  eviden»',e 
of  increasing  interest  in  this  direction.  The  fact  that  the 
French  Canadian  population  has  increased  so  rapidly  only 
proves  that  more  come  than  return,  while  the  statistics  ■ 
property  show  that  permanency  is  becoming  the  rule.  This, 
of  course,  is  strongly  shown  in  the  building  of  churches,  the 
establishment  of  schools,  societies,  literary  associations,  etc. 

Now,  while  it  would  have  been  very  easy  to  have  combated 
the  evidence  given  at  the  hearing,  and  to  have  introduced 
much  testimony  to  support  the  statements  contained  in  the 
report  of  last  year,  and  while  we  see  no  reason  to  strike  out 
the  statements  therein  made  when  read  in  the  light  of  the 
present  report,  it  is  very  gratifying  to  know  that  a  wide  and 
rapidly  growing  movement  has  arisen  among  the  French  Ca- 
nadians within  the  past  few  years,  towards  becoming  citizens, 
fully  identified  with  us  as  a  permanent  and  honorable  part  of 
our  people ;  and  in  their  every  endeavor  in   this  direction 

1  See  Part  II.  —  "  Citizenship." 


m 


92 


STATISTICS  OF  LABOR. 


Americans  can  but  wish  them  GoH -speed.     Partly  as  a  result 
of  this  movement  efforts  for  repatriation  have  been  abandoned, 
and  it  is  now  the  settled  policy  of  the  Canadian  French,  who 
come  among  us,  to  come  as  permanent  residents,  and  to  be 
Americans.      Although  this  movement  is  recent,  yet  it  is 
accompanied  by  such  laudable  endeavors  to  acquire  a  knowl- 
e(''^e  of  our  institutions,  and  to  take  active  and  intelligent 
part  in  our  national  life,  that  doubtless  our  best  wishes  con- 
cerning them  will  be  realized.     The  action  of  every  French 
Canadian  convention  which  we  have  noted  leans  strongly  in 
this  direction.     With  such  aspirations  and  purposes  as  were 
manifested   at  the   hearing,  complete  assimilation  with  the 
American  people  is  but  a  question  of  time.     It  was  the  desire 
to  make  known  these  aspirations  and  purposes,  and  a  dispo- 
sition to  treat  all  parties  fairly,  which  induced  the  Bureau  to 
give  the  hearing;  the  same  reasons  warranted  the  use  of  so 
much  of  the  space  of  this  report.     The  prosperity  of  New 
England  demands  the  rapid  progress  of  all  her  industrial 
forces,  and  of  these  the  French  Canadian  element  is  cer- 
tainly one  of  the  most  important. 


I  result 
idoned, 
jh,  who 
I  to  be 
et  it  is 
knowl- 
sUigent 
es  con- 
French 
ngly  in 
as  were 
iih  the 
3  desire 
1,  dispo- 
reau  to 
e  of  so 
)f  New 
dustrial 
is  cer- 


